It was barely snowing when I went to the New Year's party at my friends' house, but there was close to an inch on the ground for my drive home.
I saw a car that looked like it had slid off the road into the median thing (on a freeway), but by the time my brain processed the lights in an unexpected place, I couldn't safely stop, so I went home and called 911.
It's the first time I've ever called 911. Happy New Year. I hope the people in the car are okay.
Then I dug out my drive because three inches in the morning is a lot easier than four, right? That's my theory, anyway. I'd rather dig twice, especially when it's wet and heavy as this is. It's also the wet and heavy that sticks beautifully to tree branches and such.
Happy New Year!
Saturday, December 31, 2011
The Year in Review
Everyone's doing it, so I am.
1) I lived in a big old manor house. Seriously big. But not so old. (As before, if you can identify this, please don't put it in the comments. Feel free to email me if you want to let on.)
2) I haven't gotten to teach Shakespeare in two years (spring 2010 was the last time). But I will be teaching Shakespeare next semester! Yay
On the other hand, I've gotten to teach Chaucer and lots of other early modern lit. And I'm prepping a seminar on Marlowe for next semester, and I'm feeling really good about it.
3) I ran more than before, and didn't bike as much, but I had a good time.
4) I'm overweight and have the beginnings of high blood pressure so I'm trying to exercise more, eat less, and not drink alcohol. (Though I did have the occasional small cider in the UK, because cider!)
5) I finished a big project at work, and it was okay.
***
And for the new year, resolutions? Not so much. But I am working on the weight and exercise and blood pressure stuff. And I'm working on a paper. And trying not to be a jerk. (There's my big life goal. It's a pretty low standard, but if everyone aimed there, things would be better.)
My other goal is to watch as few political ads as possible in the coming year. I may have to turn off my TV a lot.
1) I lived in a big old manor house. Seriously big. But not so old. (As before, if you can identify this, please don't put it in the comments. Feel free to email me if you want to let on.)
2) I haven't gotten to teach Shakespeare in two years (spring 2010 was the last time). But I will be teaching Shakespeare next semester! Yay
On the other hand, I've gotten to teach Chaucer and lots of other early modern lit. And I'm prepping a seminar on Marlowe for next semester, and I'm feeling really good about it.
3) I ran more than before, and didn't bike as much, but I had a good time.
4) I'm overweight and have the beginnings of high blood pressure so I'm trying to exercise more, eat less, and not drink alcohol. (Though I did have the occasional small cider in the UK, because cider!)
5) I finished a big project at work, and it was okay.
***
And for the new year, resolutions? Not so much. But I am working on the weight and exercise and blood pressure stuff. And I'm working on a paper. And trying not to be a jerk. (There's my big life goal. It's a pretty low standard, but if everyone aimed there, things would be better.)
My other goal is to watch as few political ads as possible in the coming year. I may have to turn off my TV a lot.
Discontent
I clicked through a blog I read to a collection of personal finance stuffs. Most of the blogs or sites linked seem to be trying to do their financing through blog ads, often a lot of blog ads, enough blog ads that it's sometimes hard to see what they have to say. (And, of course, they're organized so that you have to click a lot to load a new page to read a bit more content, which I'm guessing means the ad counts as another "view" and so adds just a tiny bit of revenue?)
The thing is, most of what they have to say isn't new to anyone who's been even minimally financially aware.
And then there are the ones who are all about how they're going to get rich by age whatever, but they never seem to give enough information so you can see how they're doing it (except by the numbers of ads on the site). If you're making 100K a year, and talking about putting away 5K, that's way different than if you're making 30K a year, isn't it?
There's something ponzi-ish about these, too. (Not in the illegal sense, because they don't seem to be doing obvious investment schemes, but in the sense that we can't all retire at 30 or whatever given that we need folks who are willing to work just to feed everyone.) That's not to say you shouldn't retire at 30 if you want and can. I'm way past that, but go for it.
In a way, looking at these is like looking at dieting stuff. I need to lose weight, and I'd love to find some magic way to do it, just as I'd love to find a magic way to make my income triple.
One of my cousins did a link thing on eff bee about a weight loss app thing. Unless it makes me exercise or not eat, how is an app going to help? (I think it's one of those keep track of things like eating and exercise, and just keeping track helps you be motivated and such. That probably works well, and it would work even better if it gave you some sort of special powers in WoW or EQ!)
But the basics are:
more in than out = gaining weight or saving money
more out than in = losing weight or going into debt
There you are, Bardiac's theory re first world problems. (Now, if I could sell my body fat, I'd have a perfect solution!)
I'm baking pumpkin bread for a party tonight. It smells GREAT! Too good, in fact. It's sort of torturous how good it smells. (Because, did I mention, I'm trying to lose weight? Pumpkin bread isn't on the diet, either. Alas.)
I'm going out to the coast next week, which will blow both the exercise and eating parts of losing weight for a couple days. Bleargh
I also need to update my CV again. I hate that. I should just do it every time I do something, but of course I don't, and then I have to try to remember stuff. Bleargh!
The thing is, most of what they have to say isn't new to anyone who's been even minimally financially aware.
And then there are the ones who are all about how they're going to get rich by age whatever, but they never seem to give enough information so you can see how they're doing it (except by the numbers of ads on the site). If you're making 100K a year, and talking about putting away 5K, that's way different than if you're making 30K a year, isn't it?
There's something ponzi-ish about these, too. (Not in the illegal sense, because they don't seem to be doing obvious investment schemes, but in the sense that we can't all retire at 30 or whatever given that we need folks who are willing to work just to feed everyone.) That's not to say you shouldn't retire at 30 if you want and can. I'm way past that, but go for it.
In a way, looking at these is like looking at dieting stuff. I need to lose weight, and I'd love to find some magic way to do it, just as I'd love to find a magic way to make my income triple.
One of my cousins did a link thing on eff bee about a weight loss app thing. Unless it makes me exercise or not eat, how is an app going to help? (I think it's one of those keep track of things like eating and exercise, and just keeping track helps you be motivated and such. That probably works well, and it would work even better if it gave you some sort of special powers in WoW or EQ!)
But the basics are:
more in than out = gaining weight or saving money
more out than in = losing weight or going into debt
There you are, Bardiac's theory re first world problems. (Now, if I could sell my body fat, I'd have a perfect solution!)
I'm baking pumpkin bread for a party tonight. It smells GREAT! Too good, in fact. It's sort of torturous how good it smells. (Because, did I mention, I'm trying to lose weight? Pumpkin bread isn't on the diet, either. Alas.)
I'm going out to the coast next week, which will blow both the exercise and eating parts of losing weight for a couple days. Bleargh
I also need to update my CV again. I hate that. I should just do it every time I do something, but of course I don't, and then I have to try to remember stuff. Bleargh!
Friday, December 30, 2011
Typing Fast
When I used to play an on-line game, and even if I chat in eff bee, I often have this weird thing where I'm typing two conversations ahead of the other person. I'll type a comment or question and then wait. (And in eff bee, you get a little message that the other person is typing.) And then I'll get impatient and add another comment or message. And then I'll wait. And then I'll get impatient, and so on.
Maybe it's because the other person is on a slow connection. Or maybe they think before they type? Or they're doing something else at the same time?
I know that I really, really want a response, and that I get impatient without it (until I start putting up a post on blogger).
Maybe it's because the other person is on a slow connection. Or maybe they think before they type? Or they're doing something else at the same time?
I know that I really, really want a response, and that I get impatient without it (until I start putting up a post on blogger).
Wednesday, December 28, 2011
Genetic Clutter
When I was visiting my brother, I noticed the clutter in his home office. I get so used to my own office clutter that I don't see it, but I'm reminded to look now that I've noticed his again.
We both tend to stack papers around the room. Our Dad did the same thing. It amazed me when I worked for the family business at various times that he could pretty much instantly put his hands on whatever he needed, even if it were part of a six inch pile of paper. It's genetic, I think. My Mom's much neater genes must be recessives; she doesn't clutter nearly as much as we do. And she was always frustrated by our clutter when I was growing up.
I'm not usually that good at finding what I need, alas. When I was a kid, I had this notebook thing to carry my papers, but I kept losing my homework in there and getting in trouble. It drove my Mom nuts! And rightly so.
So today I cleaned much of the clutter in my office at work, yet again. I seem to clean up about once a year, and then re-clutter. I need to clean up my home office, but I've been a lot better about that since I cleaned it last summer (perhaps because I haven't been here to clutter?), so it won't be too bad.
I also got some stuff done for my Marlowe class, so it was a productive day all around!
We both tend to stack papers around the room. Our Dad did the same thing. It amazed me when I worked for the family business at various times that he could pretty much instantly put his hands on whatever he needed, even if it were part of a six inch pile of paper. It's genetic, I think. My Mom's much neater genes must be recessives; she doesn't clutter nearly as much as we do. And she was always frustrated by our clutter when I was growing up.
I'm not usually that good at finding what I need, alas. When I was a kid, I had this notebook thing to carry my papers, but I kept losing my homework in there and getting in trouble. It drove my Mom nuts! And rightly so.
So today I cleaned much of the clutter in my office at work, yet again. I seem to clean up about once a year, and then re-clutter. I need to clean up my home office, but I've been a lot better about that since I cleaned it last summer (perhaps because I haven't been here to clutter?), so it won't be too bad.
I also got some stuff done for my Marlowe class, so it was a productive day all around!
Anti-Riot Architecture
I walked myself over to the campus library this morning to get some Marlowe books, and on the way, I saw the new student center building. When I left in late summer, they were breaking ground. Now the building looks pretty complete from the outside. And what I could see is beautiful!
It's our first new building here since the '70s, if I recall correctly. Remember '70s campus architecture? It was all about limiting and containing riots. Our other buildings tend to look like big blocks with tiny windows, mostly well out of reach of anyone on the ground.
But this new building has lots of beautiful, big windows. Supposedly it's designed to use passive solar and such when it can (there's not much solar during winter here), and to be quite energy conservative.
Really, it's beautiful. I stared out at it from the upper floor of the library and thought, wow, that's a real improvement!
And then I thought about how many more steps the administrators will have to take to get there compared to the current student center (which is where food and the bookstore and such are available). Currently, they have a few steps across a covered walkway, or if the weather's really nasty, they can go underground.
I wonder if there's a new tunnel being built for them?
Did I mention how beautiful the building looks? It's so NOT anti-riot architecture! Windows!
We're supposed to build a new academic building and our department is supposed to move there in a couple years. I hope it also has beautiful windows! Windows!
It's our first new building here since the '70s, if I recall correctly. Remember '70s campus architecture? It was all about limiting and containing riots. Our other buildings tend to look like big blocks with tiny windows, mostly well out of reach of anyone on the ground.
But this new building has lots of beautiful, big windows. Supposedly it's designed to use passive solar and such when it can (there's not much solar during winter here), and to be quite energy conservative.
Really, it's beautiful. I stared out at it from the upper floor of the library and thought, wow, that's a real improvement!
And then I thought about how many more steps the administrators will have to take to get there compared to the current student center (which is where food and the bookstore and such are available). Currently, they have a few steps across a covered walkway, or if the weather's really nasty, they can go underground.
I wonder if there's a new tunnel being built for them?
Did I mention how beautiful the building looks? It's so NOT anti-riot architecture! Windows!
We're supposed to build a new academic building and our department is supposed to move there in a couple years. I hope it also has beautiful windows! Windows!
Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Prepping the Seminar
I'm teaching a senior seminar on Marlowe this coming semester, and I'm working on prepping a bit. I've assigned Riggs' The World of Christopher Marlowe, but I'm not entirely thrilled as I think about how it will work for students. It's really dense in some areas in ways that seem likely to be difficult for students. Heck, it's dense for me. (Mostly it's the spy stuff.)
But I like the stuff on educational practices. I'm not sure the students will, though. (I had to order books way back in summer.)
I'm working on a list of terms (people's names, places, etc) to have students do very short (a couple of paragraphs max) papers on to teach each other some basic stuff about the period. I'd be happy for more ideas, please. (I need at least 20 to give everyone one.)
But I like the stuff on educational practices. I'm not sure the students will, though. (I had to order books way back in summer.)
I'm working on a list of terms (people's names, places, etc) to have students do very short (a couple of paragraphs max) papers on to teach each other some basic stuff about the period. I'd be happy for more ideas, please. (I need at least 20 to give everyone one.)
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Meanings
Here's a little something for your reading pleasure. And, if you click through (it's a totally work-safe comic), Calamaties of Nature will donate to Doctors without Borders.
Here's wishing everyone a good day.
Here's wishing everyone a good day.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Stupid Holiday Movies and Connections
There seems to be this genre of holiday movies that involve:
1) A young woman who doesn't have a partner (because he dumped her or she hasn't found one).
2) She finds/pays a young man to pretend to be her partner (and this is fiance, because marriage in the future is a super important part of all this). The young man's pretense also includes pretending to be a high powered business/lawyer type, though he isn't.
3) True love is discovered, with maybe a bonus gay brother coming out. Future marriage is planned.
Bleargh!
Message for girls: Having a fiance or getting married is the most important thing ever!
Message for boys: While it's preferable to be a high powered business/lawyer type, you can still get the hot girl anyway because girls are desperate.
Have I just happened to see the wrong channel at the wrong time, or is this a new genre?
I can't help thinking about the coming home scene in Annie Hall, which involves Annie's brother at some point talking about his desire/dream of driving into oncoming traffic, while Alvy looks terrified.
And that reminds me that I'm listening to a book on CD on the road of stories from the New Yorker all of which are mostly about New York. So far, I'm not thrilled. The impression these stories give is that everyone in New York is white (except for a story by Jamaica Kincaid, which is narrated by a young black woman who's a nanny), wealthy (except for the Jamaica Kincaid story, most seem to have trust funds or if they have a job, it's as a director of some foundation or a professor who doesn't actually have to teach), and a jerk. (Sorry, the parallelism sucks there.)
Count me unimpressed.
1) A young woman who doesn't have a partner (because he dumped her or she hasn't found one).
2) She finds/pays a young man to pretend to be her partner (and this is fiance, because marriage in the future is a super important part of all this). The young man's pretense also includes pretending to be a high powered business/lawyer type, though he isn't.
3) True love is discovered, with maybe a bonus gay brother coming out. Future marriage is planned.
Bleargh!
Message for girls: Having a fiance or getting married is the most important thing ever!
Message for boys: While it's preferable to be a high powered business/lawyer type, you can still get the hot girl anyway because girls are desperate.
Have I just happened to see the wrong channel at the wrong time, or is this a new genre?
I can't help thinking about the coming home scene in Annie Hall, which involves Annie's brother at some point talking about his desire/dream of driving into oncoming traffic, while Alvy looks terrified.
And that reminds me that I'm listening to a book on CD on the road of stories from the New Yorker all of which are mostly about New York. So far, I'm not thrilled. The impression these stories give is that everyone in New York is white (except for a story by Jamaica Kincaid, which is narrated by a young black woman who's a nanny), wealthy (except for the Jamaica Kincaid story, most seem to have trust funds or if they have a job, it's as a director of some foundation or a professor who doesn't actually have to teach), and a jerk. (Sorry, the parallelism sucks there.)
Count me unimpressed.
Thursday, December 22, 2011
And I'm Off!
I'm off to visit family. I just have to pack. And take a nap.
I feel like I just got home or something.
:)
I feel like I just got home or something.
:)
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Coolness!
We have a program here that matches up really good first year students with a faculty member to do a research project. Last fall, one of these students just happened to want to do a Shakespeare project, and I was happy to work with hir. Zie started out with an interest in a specific play, but (as you'd expect) little idea where to go with that. We'd chat once a week or so, and zie would go off and do a ton of reading. Zie's read at least 30 other early modern plays, maybe more, and we've talked about them. I've given hir a fair bit of guidance in terms of suggestions early on, but less so as zie got more and more into the reading.
This past semester, zie has been working on her own, emailing occasionally, but mostly reading even more. Now, having read a ton, zie has found something that strikes hir as very interesting. And it's something I haven't noticed, nor have I seen other critics noticing it. So that's very cool! We met this morning and talked, and sort of set out the rest of the year so that zie can do the project and present it at the undergrad research day on campus.
So now zie is ready to read some criticism, and going to it.
What a delight!
This past semester, zie has been working on her own, emailing occasionally, but mostly reading even more. Now, having read a ton, zie has found something that strikes hir as very interesting. And it's something I haven't noticed, nor have I seen other critics noticing it. So that's very cool! We met this morning and talked, and sort of set out the rest of the year so that zie can do the project and present it at the undergrad research day on campus.
So now zie is ready to read some criticism, and going to it.
What a delight!
Saturday, December 17, 2011
Chores
I've been doing some garden chores. I think I mentioned last spring that one of my two Tamarack trees had died, and the other had half died (the top half). Well, I cut down the dead tree today, and bundled up the smaller stuff into kindling. I have a friend with an outdoor fireplace thing they use during summer, and I'm hoping they'd like some kindling and small wood pieces. (The tamarack had maybe a three inch diameter bole at the biggest part.)
One of my neighbors stopped by to welcome me back, so I asked him about one of my pine trees. A couple of years ago, the top leader died, and two branchings were vying to become the new top, with no clear winner. So it's either cut one of them off so the other will take over, or have a tree that splits. I chose to cut one of them off (not only for aesthetic reasons, either, but because I want more height and less chance of one part getting weak and coming down on top of my or my neighbor's house). And my neighbor handily had a pole saw. I had my doubts, but it was super easy, and about five minutes from walking into the yard with it to walking out to return it, having cut off the less straight leader.
I figure I have a couple hours of yard cleanup, cutting back dead iris stuff and other stuff, and then I need to get some mulch to put on the strawberries and such, I think.
At least I'm grateful for almost no snow in the yard for gardening sake, even if I'm impatient for skiing sake.
I mentioned back a waysthat one of my feet was hurting. Being back, I went to see the doctor about it, and I'm mildly (and probably irrationally) frustrated.
It starts with the weighing thing. Now I know I'm badly overweight. It's not a secret to anyone who looks at me. But I also know that weighing me means that the clinic gets to tick off extra stuff to make my visit more complex and more expensive, even though the nurse laughingly says that I'm getting more for my money. Yeah, not so much.
And then the blood pressure (also adding complexity to the visit), which was way high, higher than it's ever been. And then the doctor is working with a student nurse practitioner, so the SNP saw me first. That's fine for foot stuff, but I'm guessing this is a student at my school, and that means there's some chance that I've had any given NP student in some class at some point (writing or GE sorts of classes). And that seems weird. But for foot stuff, fine.
So she asks me about the pain compared with the worse pain I've ever had. I'll admit it here, I've never had a lot of pain (and said as much). I'm grateful for that lack of past pain, by the way. So then she asked about the worst pain I could imagine. So I'm thinking flaying alive, burned at the stake, broken on the wheel. I have a pretty good imagination, and given that, I told her that my pain was about a point one (same as I'd told the nurse before). I think that was a mistake.
The SNP pokes the foot a bit, and asks me to walk, so I do. And the foot doesn't hurt that day, though it did the night before a little in a soreness way.
Then the doctor comes in, and starts talking about my blood pressure, which as I mentioned is way high. The thing is, it's always way high at a doctor's office. So she measures it again, and it's down by like 30 points on the top part, but still high. I hand her the card that I've been using to keep track, as I was supposed to do (the nurse at the Abbey was kind enough to measure it for me every couple of weeks), and there it's a little higher than ideal, but not nearly this high.
The doctor says she's more worried about the blood pressure than my foot, and I say that I'm more worried about my foot because it's been hurting. It's not that I don't recognize that high blood pressure is a problem, but the foot hurts, and that's why I'm there. Then we talk about the cold medicine I've been on (which I'd also mentioned to the nurse when she asked about medications).
And she does look at the foot, poke it a bit, and have me walk.
The upshot is: (1) I'm not supposed to take cold medications anymore. She gave me a prescription for an inhaled steroid to use for sinus stuff if I get another cold.
(2) I have another card to do the blood pressure thing every couple weeks.
(3) She gave me a choice between trying some physical therapy for the foot or going to a podiatrist, and recommended the physical therapy, so she gave me a referral to the physical therapy department.
I guess I'm frustrated because what I want is to know what's wrong with my foot, and I don't. And I'm frustrated that I shouldn't take cold medications any more, and worried that the inhaled stuff won't help me and will mess up my nose and make it bleed, and then (if I get a cold), I'll be teaching with a nose that's running and bleeding, because I never feel like I can call in sick with a cold and have three classes of 20-35 people fall behind and get messed up.
And I know it's not really reasonable to be frustrated, because if the physical therapy works, then it won't matter what was wrong with my foot. And I don't usually get more than one cold a year when I'm not running around on busses, subways, and trains in a foreign country, so the cold thing isn't that big a deal, and I do know that having high blood pressure is really bad. But I didn't go for that, I went for my foot. I feel like being honest about the pain (and after all, I'm not disabled by it or writhing on the floor) means that she didn't really take the foot thing very seriously. But then, remembering Elaine Scarry reminds me that another person's pain is really hard to comprehend or really worry about.
The final kicker: I can't see the physical therapist she recommended until January 10th, which is after my new insurance kicks in, complete with a percentage co-pay (I think it's like 10%, but I can't remember for sure), so I guess I will need to call the insurance company at the beginning of the year and ask about if I need pre-approval. And then I'll have to call and ask the clinic how much a physical therapy appointment is likely to run, so that I can try to budget for my 10% (or whatever it is, I'll have to ask the insurance company). Then I'll have to try to get estimates for any other visits, which I gather isn't easy.
I think I need to go cut up some weeds or something to destress some more.
One of my neighbors stopped by to welcome me back, so I asked him about one of my pine trees. A couple of years ago, the top leader died, and two branchings were vying to become the new top, with no clear winner. So it's either cut one of them off so the other will take over, or have a tree that splits. I chose to cut one of them off (not only for aesthetic reasons, either, but because I want more height and less chance of one part getting weak and coming down on top of my or my neighbor's house). And my neighbor handily had a pole saw. I had my doubts, but it was super easy, and about five minutes from walking into the yard with it to walking out to return it, having cut off the less straight leader.
I figure I have a couple hours of yard cleanup, cutting back dead iris stuff and other stuff, and then I need to get some mulch to put on the strawberries and such, I think.
At least I'm grateful for almost no snow in the yard for gardening sake, even if I'm impatient for skiing sake.
I mentioned back a waysthat one of my feet was hurting. Being back, I went to see the doctor about it, and I'm mildly (and probably irrationally) frustrated.
It starts with the weighing thing. Now I know I'm badly overweight. It's not a secret to anyone who looks at me. But I also know that weighing me means that the clinic gets to tick off extra stuff to make my visit more complex and more expensive, even though the nurse laughingly says that I'm getting more for my money. Yeah, not so much.
And then the blood pressure (also adding complexity to the visit), which was way high, higher than it's ever been. And then the doctor is working with a student nurse practitioner, so the SNP saw me first. That's fine for foot stuff, but I'm guessing this is a student at my school, and that means there's some chance that I've had any given NP student in some class at some point (writing or GE sorts of classes). And that seems weird. But for foot stuff, fine.
So she asks me about the pain compared with the worse pain I've ever had. I'll admit it here, I've never had a lot of pain (and said as much). I'm grateful for that lack of past pain, by the way. So then she asked about the worst pain I could imagine. So I'm thinking flaying alive, burned at the stake, broken on the wheel. I have a pretty good imagination, and given that, I told her that my pain was about a point one (same as I'd told the nurse before). I think that was a mistake.
The SNP pokes the foot a bit, and asks me to walk, so I do. And the foot doesn't hurt that day, though it did the night before a little in a soreness way.
Then the doctor comes in, and starts talking about my blood pressure, which as I mentioned is way high. The thing is, it's always way high at a doctor's office. So she measures it again, and it's down by like 30 points on the top part, but still high. I hand her the card that I've been using to keep track, as I was supposed to do (the nurse at the Abbey was kind enough to measure it for me every couple of weeks), and there it's a little higher than ideal, but not nearly this high.
The doctor says she's more worried about the blood pressure than my foot, and I say that I'm more worried about my foot because it's been hurting. It's not that I don't recognize that high blood pressure is a problem, but the foot hurts, and that's why I'm there. Then we talk about the cold medicine I've been on (which I'd also mentioned to the nurse when she asked about medications).
And she does look at the foot, poke it a bit, and have me walk.
The upshot is: (1) I'm not supposed to take cold medications anymore. She gave me a prescription for an inhaled steroid to use for sinus stuff if I get another cold.
(2) I have another card to do the blood pressure thing every couple weeks.
(3) She gave me a choice between trying some physical therapy for the foot or going to a podiatrist, and recommended the physical therapy, so she gave me a referral to the physical therapy department.
I guess I'm frustrated because what I want is to know what's wrong with my foot, and I don't. And I'm frustrated that I shouldn't take cold medications any more, and worried that the inhaled stuff won't help me and will mess up my nose and make it bleed, and then (if I get a cold), I'll be teaching with a nose that's running and bleeding, because I never feel like I can call in sick with a cold and have three classes of 20-35 people fall behind and get messed up.
And I know it's not really reasonable to be frustrated, because if the physical therapy works, then it won't matter what was wrong with my foot. And I don't usually get more than one cold a year when I'm not running around on busses, subways, and trains in a foreign country, so the cold thing isn't that big a deal, and I do know that having high blood pressure is really bad. But I didn't go for that, I went for my foot. I feel like being honest about the pain (and after all, I'm not disabled by it or writhing on the floor) means that she didn't really take the foot thing very seriously. But then, remembering Elaine Scarry reminds me that another person's pain is really hard to comprehend or really worry about.
The final kicker: I can't see the physical therapist she recommended until January 10th, which is after my new insurance kicks in, complete with a percentage co-pay (I think it's like 10%, but I can't remember for sure), so I guess I will need to call the insurance company at the beginning of the year and ask about if I need pre-approval. And then I'll have to call and ask the clinic how much a physical therapy appointment is likely to run, so that I can try to budget for my 10% (or whatever it is, I'll have to ask the insurance company). Then I'll have to try to get estimates for any other visits, which I gather isn't easy.
I think I need to go cut up some weeds or something to destress some more.
Friday, December 16, 2011
Back in the Saddle
I came in to the department for a bit today for a meeting (I was glad I was there and it went well), and I was in the other day just to do recycling and say hi.
And the best part of being back is that people are genuinely glad to see me. I even got a hug from someone who doesn't tend to give hugs.
The picture of junk mail I posted the other day? I had about a third of that amount waiting for me here.
And my computer got changed, so I came in and had to start reconfiguring. And now I need to figure out how to print (I had to email stuff to a colleague this morning because I couldn't figure out).
But it's all worth it to have people welcome me home.
And the best part of being back is that people are genuinely glad to see me. I even got a hug from someone who doesn't tend to give hugs.
The picture of junk mail I posted the other day? I had about a third of that amount waiting for me here.
And my computer got changed, so I came in and had to start reconfiguring. And now I need to figure out how to print (I had to email stuff to a colleague this morning because I couldn't figure out).
But it's all worth it to have people welcome me home.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Librarians
When I was a kid, and even when I was in college, librarians seemed foreboding.
Nowadays, either I see things differently or there's been a world of change, because all the libraries I've seen in the past few years, and all the librarians I've talked to in the past few years are all about being friendly and helpful, and having a sense of humor while getting the job done.
Our campus library folks put jigsaw puzzles out for people to work on as they pass and bring in therapy dogs during finals for students to pet (the students love that!). And the latest thing: there's a poster up in the library now, during finals week that says,
Nowadays, either I see things differently or there's been a world of change, because all the libraries I've seen in the past few years, and all the librarians I've talked to in the past few years are all about being friendly and helpful, and having a sense of humor while getting the job done.
Our campus library folks put jigsaw puzzles out for people to work on as they pass and bring in therapy dogs during finals for students to pet (the students love that!). And the latest thing: there's a poster up in the library now, during finals week that says,
1% of the semesterIt's brilliant!
99% of the stress
Occupy [Name of Library]
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
You've Got Mail!
It's fairly easy to winnow down, but I'd like to know a way to get companies not to send me catalogues just because I've bought something from them.
I walked around yesterday with a headache, exhausted but not sleepy (does that even make sense) and took care of stuff. I took your collective advice and tried to make sure I drank plenty of water and waited for night to go back to bed.
And now I feel pretty good. I'm not sure how much of my headache yesterday was having a slight cold (stuffed sinuses more than anything) or jet lag, but it's way better today.
Something weird: I got a letter yesterday on city stationery telling me that they'd been trying to get me to change my meter, and that if I didn't arrange to do it by a date in January, there'd be a huge daily fine. So I called and arranged, and they're supposed to come by today.
But then I thought this morning, wait, where are the other letters about this? Because I didn't see any other notices when I went through the mail, and I'm sure I would have noticed.
And then I thought, uh oh, what if there's some scam thing, and some robbers are going to come steal everything I own at 9:30 am, when we have an appointment?
And then I thought, maybe I should call my neighbor and ask her if she's had a meter thingy.
And then I thought, I bet the earlier notices were part of the city bill thing, and the person I had watching the house didn't actually look at them except to get the amount due?
And then I thought, I'd better get dressed before they come, at any rate. So that's where I am now. About to put down the computer and go get dressed.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Jet Lag
I need a cure for jet lag, please!
My plan was to spend all day yesterday traveling, arriving home in the middle of the night, and then to sleep forever today.
I woke up and was awake much of the night. And I woke up at about 8am with one of those headaches that isn't fun at all. I changed clothes in the washer/dryer, had hot cocoa and instant mac and cheese (someone needs to go to the grocery store), a couple of ibuprofin. I also called my Mom so she wouldn't worry.
And now we'll see if I can go back to sleep for a bit, otherwise I'll shower, dress, and go to the grocery store.
Help!
My plan was to spend all day yesterday traveling, arriving home in the middle of the night, and then to sleep forever today.
I woke up and was awake much of the night. And I woke up at about 8am with one of those headaches that isn't fun at all. I changed clothes in the washer/dryer, had hot cocoa and instant mac and cheese (someone needs to go to the grocery store), a couple of ibuprofin. I also called my Mom so she wouldn't worry.
And now we'll see if I can go back to sleep for a bit, otherwise I'll shower, dress, and go to the grocery store.
Help!
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Last Night
Today was my last real day in the UK and in London. And it was a good one. I started off with a ride on the London Eye, and then walked along the South Bank and the market to the Globe and the real Globe site and the Rose site. Then I went to Southwark Cathedral (which used to be a parish church, St. Savior's, back in the day, and may have been the parish Shakespeare attended while in London). Then I went to the V&A and wandered happily through the medieval stuff.
I topped off the evening with fish and chips and a small cider.
Tomorrow, a long day of travel ahead, and then back to the Northwoods. Brrr!
I topped off the evening with fish and chips and a small cider.
Tomorrow, a long day of travel ahead, and then back to the Northwoods. Brrr!
Saturday, December 10, 2011
Rounding Out
About a week or so after I got to the UK, I caught a cold, a nasty, nasty cold. I remember dripping my nose's way around the V&A the first time, sneezing and feeling droopy.
And a couple weeks after I got to the Abbey, I got the same hacking cough of a cold that everyone else was having.
And now, apparently, I've caught another cold, just in time to get on an airplane and share it with everyone on the plane and in two states. Bleargh. So far I'm at the half a day in, scratchy throat beginning the drippy nose phase. Lovely. I can't wait to get on a plane.
And naturally, my plan is to go back to the V&A tomorrow for a last visit. I may also go to the London Eye, depending on how things feel, to do something new to me.
Today I went to the Tower (I bought a historic palaces membership back when, so the visit was easy), then walked to St. Paul's and spent a long time there, said my goodbye to Donne's effigy. Then I walked to St. Martin's in the Fields, which, by the way, isn't in any field these days. It's right next to Tralfagar Square, in fact, and I should have gone there the other day, since when I got there today, it was already closed for a concert this afternoon. So I visited the shop in the undercroft thing, and then headed back to my room for a rest. And now it's time to go out and forage some food.
This week I've had: Chinese, Fish & Chips, Indian, and tonight I'm thinking kebab. But we'll see what looks good when I walk by.
And a couple weeks after I got to the Abbey, I got the same hacking cough of a cold that everyone else was having.
And now, apparently, I've caught another cold, just in time to get on an airplane and share it with everyone on the plane and in two states. Bleargh. So far I'm at the half a day in, scratchy throat beginning the drippy nose phase. Lovely. I can't wait to get on a plane.
And naturally, my plan is to go back to the V&A tomorrow for a last visit. I may also go to the London Eye, depending on how things feel, to do something new to me.
Today I went to the Tower (I bought a historic palaces membership back when, so the visit was easy), then walked to St. Paul's and spent a long time there, said my goodbye to Donne's effigy. Then I walked to St. Martin's in the Fields, which, by the way, isn't in any field these days. It's right next to Tralfagar Square, in fact, and I should have gone there the other day, since when I got there today, it was already closed for a concert this afternoon. So I visited the shop in the undercroft thing, and then headed back to my room for a rest. And now it's time to go out and forage some food.
This week I've had: Chinese, Fish & Chips, Indian, and tonight I'm thinking kebab. But we'll see what looks good when I walk by.
Friday, December 09, 2011
And Again
Today was a repeat day: I visited Westminser Abbey and said goodbye to Chaucer and Spenser. Then I went on to the Banqueting House, which was a wonderful as before. Then on to the National Portrait Gallery, but this time just the Tudors and Stuarts. (As if there's anything to look at after them!) And finally, an hour or so in the National Gallery to see the Arnolfi portrait, Holbein's Ambassadors, some Reubens and some Rembrandts.
I'm still up in the air about tomorrow. We'll see what I feel like when morning rolls around.
It's really nice to revisit some places. I enjoyed the slight familiarity.
And I'm pretty emotionally ready to go home. (I'm very happy here, but you know how it is when you've been away awhile.)
I'm still up in the air about tomorrow. We'll see what I feel like when morning rolls around.
It's really nice to revisit some places. I enjoyed the slight familiarity.
And I'm pretty emotionally ready to go home. (I'm very happy here, but you know how it is when you've been away awhile.)
Thursday, December 08, 2011
Vocabulary at the British Museum
I spent much of the day today at the British Museum. On my first visit, I went to see the things I knew I was supposed to see, if that makes sense. I saw the Rosetta Stone, the Parthenon Marbles, the Assyrian Lion Hunt reliefs, Egyptian mummies, and so on.
The second time, I mostly went to the Relic show.
(medieval tiles showing scenes from Jesus' childhood.) So today, I figured I'd wander around and see things I hadn't seen or really looked at before. I didn't really have any strong sense, but when I walked in, there was a "what's on" electronic thing showing the mini-tours in different areas, so I decided to give one a try. And it was good, so I gave another a try, and so on.
I went on mini-tours of the Japan gallery, the Africa Gallery, the Mexico Gallery, the Medieval Europe gallery, and the Assyrian Nimrod palace gallery. They were great! I mostly saw and learned about things I hadn't really looked at before, and I learned new stuff on every tour and had a good time.
(Aztec mask built on a real skull, I think) While I was waiting for the Mexico gallery tour to begin, at the sign in the living and dying gallery, a man asked the guide what a "seal" was. I thought, that's odd, because I didn't hear an accent in the question so I thought it was an English speaker who hadn't seen many animals. So the guide started to explain the seal, and after a moment the man said, "una foca?"
And I said, "Exactly, una foca!" And then I thought, holy cow, where did that come from? I mean, it's been forever since I spoke Spanish regularly, and "foca" isn't exactly a common vocabulary word, but when I heard it in that context, I knew that's what it meant. I wouldn't have been able to produce it, or even to recognize it independently, I bet, but in the context, I did. (He was looking at a sealskin parka, turned out.)
From the palace at Nimrod, a falcon headed god thing.
I haven't given a lot of details about the Abbey, but I thought I'd post a few pictures. If you recognize it, please don't name it so that it's not googleable. This is a picture out my bedroom window early in the morning in early December. I wanted to show the frost on the lawn.
Up close, you see the inner gate. Down the drive, you can see between the trees a building called the gatehouse. Then there's green and another tiny gate in the distance. The main drive is just under a mile from the entrance to the Abbey to the far gate, and that's mostly where I went to play outside. (Sorry things aren't quite straight. I was in a smallish window.)
The second time, I mostly went to the Relic show.
I went on mini-tours of the Japan gallery, the Africa Gallery, the Mexico Gallery, the Medieval Europe gallery, and the Assyrian Nimrod palace gallery. They were great! I mostly saw and learned about things I hadn't really looked at before, and I learned new stuff on every tour and had a good time.
And I said, "Exactly, una foca!" And then I thought, holy cow, where did that come from? I mean, it's been forever since I spoke Spanish regularly, and "foca" isn't exactly a common vocabulary word, but when I heard it in that context, I knew that's what it meant. I wouldn't have been able to produce it, or even to recognize it independently, I bet, but in the context, I did. (He was looking at a sealskin parka, turned out.)
I haven't given a lot of details about the Abbey, but I thought I'd post a few pictures. If you recognize it, please don't name it so that it's not googleable. This is a picture out my bedroom window early in the morning in early December. I wanted to show the frost on the lawn.
Up close, you see the inner gate. Down the drive, you can see between the trees a building called the gatehouse. Then there's green and another tiny gate in the distance. The main drive is just under a mile from the entrance to the Abbey to the far gate, and that's mostly where I went to play outside. (Sorry things aren't quite straight. I was in a smallish window.)
Wednesday, December 07, 2011
Manuscripts!
I left the Abbey today. Wow, what an experience.
And came to London, where I'm staying only a few blocks from the British Library, so that's where I headed for a travel break. They've got an absolutely fabulous exhibit of Royal Manuscripts. Holy cow, they are AMAZING. There were some with birds, and some of them I could identify with my little ipod British bird ID app. So cool!
And came to London, where I'm staying only a few blocks from the British Library, so that's where I headed for a travel break. They've got an absolutely fabulous exhibit of Royal Manuscripts. Holy cow, they are AMAZING. There were some with birds, and some of them I could identify with my little ipod British bird ID app. So cool!
Tuesday, December 06, 2011
Finals and Frustration
If I could get three things across to students, the world would be a better place (only slightly better, but better).
1. Do your work and do it ontime.
2. Follow directions.
3. Proofread.
There.
I'm giving a final; I was going to be grading the last few papers at this time, but one of the students didn't manage to bring hir papers. They were due at the beginning of the exam.
Do I fail this student for not turning them in at the beginning of the exam? Zie says they're on hir computer, in the email inbox. Why they aren't in my email inbox, I don't know. And why the student didn't bring hir laptop to class (zie has on many occasions) so zie could put them on my flash drive or email them right there, I don't know.
I'm sort of frustrated. I can't seem to get across to this student. I hate feeling like I'm nagging, so I tend not to, and perhaps don't communicate as much as the student needs. But what the student needs, in a way, is to fail because zie didn't turn in the work. But I don't think I'll do that because it feels petty and dinkish.
I don't know why the student can't manage to turn in work in a timely manner. I'm guessing procrastination is involved, but usually (in my vast experience with procrastination) something is behind the procrastination. And most students do manage to do the work, even if it's not done to the best of their abilities when they turn it in. And some people learn from that.
And some don't. I know, I've been there, though I'm not there right now. And I'll likely be there, procrastinating like mad, at some point in the future.
Edited to add: The student turned in the work, late, but at last.
1. Do your work and do it ontime.
2. Follow directions.
3. Proofread.
There.
I'm giving a final; I was going to be grading the last few papers at this time, but one of the students didn't manage to bring hir papers. They were due at the beginning of the exam.
Do I fail this student for not turning them in at the beginning of the exam? Zie says they're on hir computer, in the email inbox. Why they aren't in my email inbox, I don't know. And why the student didn't bring hir laptop to class (zie has on many occasions) so zie could put them on my flash drive or email them right there, I don't know.
I'm sort of frustrated. I can't seem to get across to this student. I hate feeling like I'm nagging, so I tend not to, and perhaps don't communicate as much as the student needs. But what the student needs, in a way, is to fail because zie didn't turn in the work. But I don't think I'll do that because it feels petty and dinkish.
I don't know why the student can't manage to turn in work in a timely manner. I'm guessing procrastination is involved, but usually (in my vast experience with procrastination) something is behind the procrastination. And most students do manage to do the work, even if it's not done to the best of their abilities when they turn it in. And some people learn from that.
And some don't. I know, I've been there, though I'm not there right now. And I'll likely be there, procrastinating like mad, at some point in the future.
Edited to add: The student turned in the work, late, but at last.
Monday, December 05, 2011
Last Days, for Now
I'm finishing up here at the Abbey, and looking forward to a few days in London before I head home. It's a final time to visit some places I haven't seen, and revisit some I've seen.
On my revisit list:
Westminster Abbey
Banqueting House
British Museum (maybe also another visit to the British Library)
Victoria and Albert
National Portrait Gallery (I find I like portraits more than some other art, but I may go back to the National Gallery, too)
St. Paul's (and maybe Southwark Cathedral, because it's got a good feel)
Dr. Virago responded last time, and suggested the Sir John Soane, and I've been there and enjoyed it, but I don't think I need a revisit right yet (maybe next time I'm in London).
I haven't been to the Marble Arch (though I've driven by), so I might go there to stand on the Tyburn marker.
Other than that, who has a good idea? (I'm also willing to get on a train and leave town for a day trip.) I know it's way off season, but that's what it is.
Does anyone know if there's a really fun weekend market on Saturday or Sunday that's still going strong? Somewhere special to visit for good cheer? A really fun pub?
I'll be staying near King's Cross this time, which seems (like Paddington) to have a load of hotels nearby more than a neighborhood. (But it's also on the line to go to Heathrow on the subway without dragging my HUGE suitcase miles.)
On my revisit list:
Westminster Abbey
Banqueting House
British Museum (maybe also another visit to the British Library)
Victoria and Albert
National Portrait Gallery (I find I like portraits more than some other art, but I may go back to the National Gallery, too)
St. Paul's (and maybe Southwark Cathedral, because it's got a good feel)
Dr. Virago responded last time, and suggested the Sir John Soane, and I've been there and enjoyed it, but I don't think I need a revisit right yet (maybe next time I'm in London).
I haven't been to the Marble Arch (though I've driven by), so I might go there to stand on the Tyburn marker.
Other than that, who has a good idea? (I'm also willing to get on a train and leave town for a day trip.) I know it's way off season, but that's what it is.
Does anyone know if there's a really fun weekend market on Saturday or Sunday that's still going strong? Somewhere special to visit for good cheer? A really fun pub?
I'll be staying near King's Cross this time, which seems (like Paddington) to have a load of hotels nearby more than a neighborhood. (But it's also on the line to go to Heathrow on the subway without dragging my HUGE suitcase miles.)
Sunday, December 04, 2011
Readings
The other day, I stopped at the Abbey library to see if I could find a book or two to keep me happily occupied between grading. Usually at this point in a semester, I'm buried in grading, but with such small classes this semester, I'm pretty much caught up. (I sort of want to pinch myself or something when I say that, just to make sure.)
The librarian is an enabler. You know how they are. You walk in and say, "Hmm, I'm looking for a fun book." And they chat with you for a minute or two, and then they're showing you a table full of delicious looking books, and the next thing you know, you've stayed up half the night reading a book and crying. (I cry all too easily at books.)
I just finished Carol Birch's Jamrach's Menagerie, and it's quite late, much later than I intended to be up, but I don't know that I'll sleep well after finishing the book. It starts out as a bit of a romp, and then it isn't a romp at all, but intense in an unexpected way, almost too intense. It's worth a read, but do it when you don't have to get up early the next morning.
And before that I read Julian Barnes' The Sense of an Ending, which was good in a sort of disconnected way, and not nearly as intense as Jamrach's Menagerie.
That librarian has a lot to answer for if I can't sleep tonight! (Maybe I should read a bit of one of the Pratchett books I picked up at a charity shop the other day? That would be much more sleep inducing, right?)
The librarian is an enabler. You know how they are. You walk in and say, "Hmm, I'm looking for a fun book." And they chat with you for a minute or two, and then they're showing you a table full of delicious looking books, and the next thing you know, you've stayed up half the night reading a book and crying. (I cry all too easily at books.)
I just finished Carol Birch's Jamrach's Menagerie, and it's quite late, much later than I intended to be up, but I don't know that I'll sleep well after finishing the book. It starts out as a bit of a romp, and then it isn't a romp at all, but intense in an unexpected way, almost too intense. It's worth a read, but do it when you don't have to get up early the next morning.
And before that I read Julian Barnes' The Sense of an Ending, which was good in a sort of disconnected way, and not nearly as intense as Jamrach's Menagerie.
That librarian has a lot to answer for if I can't sleep tonight! (Maybe I should read a bit of one of the Pratchett books I picked up at a charity shop the other day? That would be much more sleep inducing, right?)
Magic Teacher
The story goes like this:
There's a white female teacher working in a school with a goodly population of Black students. She befriends her students, especially this one student, X, a tall, muscular Black man.
One day, in a class, another student mouths off, and X turns around and gives the student a verbal what for.
***
I am not that teacher. But I've heard that same basic story several times. And what interests me is not the veracity, for I believe the people telling it are basically telling what they experienced. No, what interests me are the common elements that are always part of it.
There's always an emphasis on the Black male student's large size and darkness.
Would the story be the same if it were a scrawny Latino student? An average white woman? I don't think so.
You know how in some movies there's a magical or mystical Black (or sometimes Asian) man who befriends a white man and somehow makes him special? I think there's something like that here, a playing out of cultural fantasies about a large Black man protecting the white woman who is out of place to some extent in her classroom. But in the stories I hear, the white woman is sort of magical, in that inspiring stand on desks sort of way, crossing racial and power boundaries in the classroom to be real friends with her students.
Then there's the implied violence: the Black male student can tell off his classmates because he knows he's the biggest, toughest male in the room.
I'm not sure, but I think it's also important that the white woman telling the story is fairly young as a teacher. I think it's important, though the story-telling woman never emphasizes that. Is that because she doesn't recognize her own youth in the story?
I always hear the story from the white female teacher. (I heard it again recently, so it's been on my mind.) That may be because I don't know many tall, muscular Black men who talk to me about their student days, while I do tend to meet and talk with women who are teachers. Student days don't last long, while a career in teaching lasts a while; and even if I were talking with X in the story, there's no real place for X to tell a white woman such as myself the story about how he came to the "rescue" of another white woman, especially if that "rescue" worked because he was willing to play up the stereotype of the large Black man who uses violence. Or maybe the story wouldn't be important enough to stick in X's memory, just another day in the classroom.
Have you heard magic teacher stories? Would you tell such a story, and if you did, what would you emphasize?
There's a white female teacher working in a school with a goodly population of Black students. She befriends her students, especially this one student, X, a tall, muscular Black man.
One day, in a class, another student mouths off, and X turns around and gives the student a verbal what for.
***
I am not that teacher. But I've heard that same basic story several times. And what interests me is not the veracity, for I believe the people telling it are basically telling what they experienced. No, what interests me are the common elements that are always part of it.
There's always an emphasis on the Black male student's large size and darkness.
Would the story be the same if it were a scrawny Latino student? An average white woman? I don't think so.
You know how in some movies there's a magical or mystical Black (or sometimes Asian) man who befriends a white man and somehow makes him special? I think there's something like that here, a playing out of cultural fantasies about a large Black man protecting the white woman who is out of place to some extent in her classroom. But in the stories I hear, the white woman is sort of magical, in that inspiring stand on desks sort of way, crossing racial and power boundaries in the classroom to be real friends with her students.
Then there's the implied violence: the Black male student can tell off his classmates because he knows he's the biggest, toughest male in the room.
I'm not sure, but I think it's also important that the white woman telling the story is fairly young as a teacher. I think it's important, though the story-telling woman never emphasizes that. Is that because she doesn't recognize her own youth in the story?
I always hear the story from the white female teacher. (I heard it again recently, so it's been on my mind.) That may be because I don't know many tall, muscular Black men who talk to me about their student days, while I do tend to meet and talk with women who are teachers. Student days don't last long, while a career in teaching lasts a while; and even if I were talking with X in the story, there's no real place for X to tell a white woman such as myself the story about how he came to the "rescue" of another white woman, especially if that "rescue" worked because he was willing to play up the stereotype of the large Black man who uses violence. Or maybe the story wouldn't be important enough to stick in X's memory, just another day in the classroom.
Have you heard magic teacher stories? Would you tell such a story, and if you did, what would you emphasize?
Saturday, December 03, 2011
Debbie Downer
At least I think that's what it was called, an 90s or so SNL skit thing where one of the actors was always responding to whatever with a big negative comment, followed by that whaaa whaaa trombone (or trumpet?) sound.
Now that our semester is over, I'd like to express my gratitude towards the Northwoods students I usually teach, all of whom are far too polite to ever say really negative things about the literature I teach to my face. I'm sure they sometimes say negative things elsewhere, but not to my face. Or if they do, they acknowledge that they're afraid of the literature, that it's not easy, or that they've had difficulty in the past. (Yes, they complain about things being too hard a fair bit, but not abou every single thing. And that's usually first year students, so not in lit classes.)
Why my gratitude? Because I had one Debbie Downer student this semester, and boy was it a drag. If I had the same proportion of downer students every semester, I'd want to do violent things likely to get me arrested.
Partly this is because I really enjoy this lit and so it's a bit of an affront for a student to say that Beowulf doesn't make any sense and they hate it, or Lear is boring.
Mr Downer also tended to interrupt a lot, often with some question only vaguely related. For example, we'd be discussing the fool in Lear, and Mr Downer would raise his hand insistently and at the same time, blurt out, "When is the final again?"
I'm sure Mr Downer will be as happy to go his way and not have to do with me, and I am to go my way and not have to do with him.
In contrast, I had another student who revealed once that he'd really disliked PL before because he couldn't make heads nor tails of what was happening. So I focused some attention on strategies for reading Milton, and Mr NotDowner seemed to start liking Milton a fair bit.
So, Mr Downer, here's to you! Have a wonderful life away from me!
Now that our semester is over, I'd like to express my gratitude towards the Northwoods students I usually teach, all of whom are far too polite to ever say really negative things about the literature I teach to my face. I'm sure they sometimes say negative things elsewhere, but not to my face. Or if they do, they acknowledge that they're afraid of the literature, that it's not easy, or that they've had difficulty in the past. (Yes, they complain about things being too hard a fair bit, but not abou every single thing. And that's usually first year students, so not in lit classes.)
Why my gratitude? Because I had one Debbie Downer student this semester, and boy was it a drag. If I had the same proportion of downer students every semester, I'd want to do violent things likely to get me arrested.
Partly this is because I really enjoy this lit and so it's a bit of an affront for a student to say that Beowulf doesn't make any sense and they hate it, or Lear is boring.
Mr Downer also tended to interrupt a lot, often with some question only vaguely related. For example, we'd be discussing the fool in Lear, and Mr Downer would raise his hand insistently and at the same time, blurt out, "When is the final again?"
I'm sure Mr Downer will be as happy to go his way and not have to do with me, and I am to go my way and not have to do with him.
In contrast, I had another student who revealed once that he'd really disliked PL before because he couldn't make heads nor tails of what was happening. So I focused some attention on strategies for reading Milton, and Mr NotDowner seemed to start liking Milton a fair bit.
So, Mr Downer, here's to you! Have a wonderful life away from me!
Friday, December 02, 2011
Nerd Nostalgia
There's a stack of blue books in one of the faculty prep rooms.
When I was in college, I played a fair bit of D&D (AD&D, to be absolutely accurate), and tended to use bluebooks to write dungeons in (little grids rock for making maps).
I can't help thinking of writing dungeons when I see bluebooks, still, to this day.
I hope students somewhere are still writing dungeons in bluebooks.
(Or should that be "geek nostalgia"?)
When I was in college, I played a fair bit of D&D (AD&D, to be absolutely accurate), and tended to use bluebooks to write dungeons in (little grids rock for making maps).
I can't help thinking of writing dungeons when I see bluebooks, still, to this day.
I hope students somewhere are still writing dungeons in bluebooks.
(Or should that be "geek nostalgia"?)
Small World
One of the visiting folks here is a deep water basketweaver. I haven't gotten to know her well, but we were both free and had tea today (and shortbread cookies!). We were chatting along, and she mentioned a school she'd been affiliated with, and it just so happens that the deep water tapestry weaver at that school was, some years ago, at a school I was affiliated with for a bit.
And yes, the deep water basketweaver knew the tapestry weaver. And we spent several minutes singing her praises, since she's a wonderful person in all sorts of ways.
But how weird is that, that we've known each other for a while, and only by coincidence did the basketweaver mention her affiliation with that school? And cool. Because in some ways I'm a wanna be deep water person only just on the edges because deep water is harder than Shakespeare and stuff. But I still like knowing deep water people because I get to learn cool stuff from them.
I wonder if the tapestry weaver's ears were burning while we lauded her? I hope so!
And yes, the deep water basketweaver knew the tapestry weaver. And we spent several minutes singing her praises, since she's a wonderful person in all sorts of ways.
But how weird is that, that we've known each other for a while, and only by coincidence did the basketweaver mention her affiliation with that school? And cool. Because in some ways I'm a wanna be deep water person only just on the edges because deep water is harder than Shakespeare and stuff. But I still like knowing deep water people because I get to learn cool stuff from them.
I wonder if the tapestry weaver's ears were burning while we lauded her? I hope so!
Thursday, December 01, 2011
A Brief and Shining Moment
I am caught up.
Yes, there's plenty I should get started on, but just for the moment, I'm caught up.
I am caught up in grading and final class preps. I still have to write finals, and grade them.
I sent off my SAA abstract, and I'm actually happy with it.
Stuff yet to do:
Write finals.
Grade finals and papers as they come in.
Meet with students about their papers so they'll be better than otherwise.*
Pack and figure out packing stuff**
Print out my ticket info, and contact someone at home about picking me up in the wee hours of the night.
Write the actual SAA paper.
In the meanwhile, I've borrowed Julian Barnes' book The Sense of an Ending from the Abbey library, and I'm enjoying that. At some point, I'll have to go buy another Pratchett book (assuming I can find one) to read on trains and airplanes and such.
* You know how students often give reasons for why they can't make this or that office hour. Usually, the reasons are along the lines of "I have to work," "I have another class," or "I can't get childcare." I just had a student tell me that she couldn't meet with me because she was going to [insert somewhat fancy international city]. How cool is THAT? I want one of my students at home to tell me that s/he can't meet with me because s/he will be in York or Paris or something someday.
**I mailed one of the sock monkey hats to one of my cousins yesterday. The people at the Royal Mail were amused and helpful. And then, of course, I couldn't help but send her a hinting eff bee message about it. I would be a terrible spy.
Yes, there's plenty I should get started on, but just for the moment, I'm caught up.
I am caught up in grading and final class preps. I still have to write finals, and grade them.
I sent off my SAA abstract, and I'm actually happy with it.
Stuff yet to do:
Write finals.
Grade finals and papers as they come in.
Meet with students about their papers so they'll be better than otherwise.*
Pack and figure out packing stuff**
Print out my ticket info, and contact someone at home about picking me up in the wee hours of the night.
Write the actual SAA paper.
In the meanwhile, I've borrowed Julian Barnes' book The Sense of an Ending from the Abbey library, and I'm enjoying that. At some point, I'll have to go buy another Pratchett book (assuming I can find one) to read on trains and airplanes and such.
* You know how students often give reasons for why they can't make this or that office hour. Usually, the reasons are along the lines of "I have to work," "I have another class," or "I can't get childcare." I just had a student tell me that she couldn't meet with me because she was going to [insert somewhat fancy international city]. How cool is THAT? I want one of my students at home to tell me that s/he can't meet with me because s/he will be in York or Paris or something someday.
**I mailed one of the sock monkey hats to one of my cousins yesterday. The people at the Royal Mail were amused and helpful. And then, of course, I couldn't help but send her a hinting eff bee message about it. I would be a terrible spy.