Tom is Away

reading “motherless brooklyn” by Jonathan Lethem

trying to decide whether to replace the laptop or have it repaired.

writing, listening for dog vomit downstairs.

tending to pretty sick dog. hoping he’s able to eat tomorrow.

passing time in the office, reading “Reasons to Live” by Amy Hempel

best decision of the semester– spreading conferences out over several weeks rather than doing 40 of them in a single day.

on a pretty steady 3 page/day pace, which isn’t so bad, but I wouldn’t mind if it were more like an 8-10 page/day pace. Maybe I’ll start writing on index cards.

too much grading tonight.
turning off my eyes.

two papers left to grade. time for a break.

one of my neighbors has been revving the engine on a motorcycle for literally 5 consecutive hours.
I wish this would stop.

I think the Irish may not be very good at email.

Your Rowdy Roddy Piper coconut-smashing link of the day

I wish I understood why the nbc10.com story on Kyle Kendrick’s demotion ended on this line:

“Maybe the Phillies should have traded Kendrick for competitive eater Takeru Kobayashi last spring. At least you know that Kobayashi can eat up the competition.”

I mean, I know who they’re talking about. But why does that make any sense? Who pays these people? Why does every story on nbc10.com read like it was written by my worst students? Why do they (probably) get paid more than me?

as usual, chasing students around about late assignments.

teaching some Honors students how to be creative.

i hate operating on Contractor Time (in which “you’ll have the estimate tomorrow” means something like “I’ll begin working on the estimate in two days, and then contact you with it in about a week or two, after you leave me several increasingly agitated voicemails”)

trying to figure out how to make a personal call without (probably) getting in trouble by using my office phone.

no, the cell phone is not an option, apparently.

trying to get booked for a banquet at a castle, assuming they can provide a gluten free meal.

you would think it’s pleasant to literally be sitting down all day (grading, reading), but actually it’s not. and you find yourself not looking forward to bed so much, unless you sleep standing up.

no writing today– too many papers to grade.