We made it okay on the day we said nothing was better than something to say
So, it's Friday. I spent my afternoon stressing about the Course of Study plan that was due today and, of course, I put off, because my New Year's Resolutions to be good and smart and on top of things rarely lasts past the first week of the year. I've sent it in, having gotten the thumbs up from my dad (have I mentioned lately how much I love my dad? 'Cause my dad is the bomb, seriously), and now, I'm done being productive. It's all young adult novels and fanfiction and Griddlers and YouTube videos from here on tonight.
The good and the bad of this week:
The good:
--In my History of the English language class, I got to read about Ivar the Boneless and his dad, Ragnar Shaggypants. Yes, Ragnar Shaggypants. They were Vikings, as you might have guessed--Ivar the Boneless spent a lot of time killing and conquering the English back in the day. Why was he called "Ivar the Boneless?" Good question! Maybe he was impotent, maybe it had to do with the whole snake thing his family had going on, but I watched a documentary on YouTube called "The Strangest Viking" that suggested he might have had Brittle bone disease, and honestly, I think that's a kind of cool idea. Supposedly, in the sagas, he's described as having gristle instead of bone and being carried into battle because he couldn't walk, so I think it's as plausible as any other explanation, and it's neat to think of a disabled fearsome Viking warlord.
--I have a bunch of awesome books from the library, including a pastoral romance and one of them big romantic epics the medieval and Renaissance times were so fond of, both written by women. I really want to read every single book in the University of Chicago's "The Other Voice in Early Modern Europe" series--it's all like 1500s feminism, and it makes me so freaking happy.
--I've been cooking up a storm, and all of it's been really good. I'm particularly fond of the chocolate-raspberry cookies and the quinoa-stuffed red bell peppers. (Yes, I know, I've got some bell pepper-haters in my circle of friends, but I found them quite tasty--my only complaint was that they wouldn't stand up in the oven, and I had to prop them in the corners of my baking pan.)
--Teaching French seems to be going a lot more smoothly this semester, at least so far. It helps that I'm not completely terrified all the time. This may seem like a silly thing to be bragging about, but it's amazing to me how easily I'm filling the fifty minutes. Last semester, it felt like I let my students out five minutes early all the goshdarned time, but now I'm actually managing to fill the whole class period, and it doesn't even feel like I'm trying harder or doing a lot more work. Part of it may be that, since my class is at 8:00 in the morning, I'm pretty much obliged to plan out my lessons the night or even the weekend before; part of it might be that I'm teaching in a "Smart classroom," which means that instead of just a blackboard, I get a computer hooked up to a projection screen so I can use Power Point presentations in class and stuff. Whatever it is, it feels really good. I'm really interested in seeing how well they do on their first quiz, which I'm giving on Monday.
--I really, really don't give a crap about the "Late-Night Wars," since I don't watch those late night TV shows, but I'm pretty amused by everybody dumping on Jay Leno and NBC. Heh.
The bad:
--The weather here was really pretty last week, but it got cold and rainy here again. Maybe I'll have to deal with some real winter after all. Poo.
--I was late for my History of the English Language class on Tuesday because I was trying to print out something for my Latin Textual Criticism class, and then the professor didn't even collect it. What a waste of time and stress.
--Sometimes I am struck by the terrible feeling that nobody here likes me. One tries not to be insecure about these things, but I sometimes feel like I screw up every single conversation or social interaction I have with anyone and everyone.
--I feel sick. I don't know if it's real, "You've got some virus or bacteria" sick, or "You haven't gotten enough sleep this week and you've eaten something that disagrees with you. Or too many beans" sick, but either way, my head and stomach and throat have felt a lot better.
--Politics makes me so freaking angry these days that I literally have to get up and run around the room sometimes, making imaginary speeches on C-SPAN. This latest big Supreme Court decision, the one where corporations can pour as much money as they like into the electoral process, makes me want to scream. Sometimes I want to defect from the world, or just form my own party, the "I give a shit about human life and happiness more than becoming a multi-billionaire" party.
--There was a big pain in the ass with my credit card today, which I don't even understand enough to go into. Meh, credit cards.
The...eh?
--Yeah, I think I'm going to do Bandom Big Bang again. I have no idea what's wrong with me.
Well. Okay. I think I've said everything I can think of.
Oh, wait! Meme.
1) I have made a list of 15 characters and assigned each character a number. I have a random mix of fandoms with which I think at least some of you should be familiar.
2) Without telling you who's on the list or the character's assigned number, I am taking questions about what you'd like to know about them. For example: why were 12 and 8 found chained together around a stop sign?
3) After everyone has responded, I will post the list and my answers.
The good and the bad of this week:
The good:
--In my History of the English language class, I got to read about Ivar the Boneless and his dad, Ragnar Shaggypants. Yes, Ragnar Shaggypants. They were Vikings, as you might have guessed--Ivar the Boneless spent a lot of time killing and conquering the English back in the day. Why was he called "Ivar the Boneless?" Good question! Maybe he was impotent, maybe it had to do with the whole snake thing his family had going on, but I watched a documentary on YouTube called "The Strangest Viking" that suggested he might have had Brittle bone disease, and honestly, I think that's a kind of cool idea. Supposedly, in the sagas, he's described as having gristle instead of bone and being carried into battle because he couldn't walk, so I think it's as plausible as any other explanation, and it's neat to think of a disabled fearsome Viking warlord.
--I have a bunch of awesome books from the library, including a pastoral romance and one of them big romantic epics the medieval and Renaissance times were so fond of, both written by women. I really want to read every single book in the University of Chicago's "The Other Voice in Early Modern Europe" series--it's all like 1500s feminism, and it makes me so freaking happy.
--I've been cooking up a storm, and all of it's been really good. I'm particularly fond of the chocolate-raspberry cookies and the quinoa-stuffed red bell peppers. (Yes, I know, I've got some bell pepper-haters in my circle of friends, but I found them quite tasty--my only complaint was that they wouldn't stand up in the oven, and I had to prop them in the corners of my baking pan.)
--Teaching French seems to be going a lot more smoothly this semester, at least so far. It helps that I'm not completely terrified all the time. This may seem like a silly thing to be bragging about, but it's amazing to me how easily I'm filling the fifty minutes. Last semester, it felt like I let my students out five minutes early all the goshdarned time, but now I'm actually managing to fill the whole class period, and it doesn't even feel like I'm trying harder or doing a lot more work. Part of it may be that, since my class is at 8:00 in the morning, I'm pretty much obliged to plan out my lessons the night or even the weekend before; part of it might be that I'm teaching in a "Smart classroom," which means that instead of just a blackboard, I get a computer hooked up to a projection screen so I can use Power Point presentations in class and stuff. Whatever it is, it feels really good. I'm really interested in seeing how well they do on their first quiz, which I'm giving on Monday.
--I really, really don't give a crap about the "Late-Night Wars," since I don't watch those late night TV shows, but I'm pretty amused by everybody dumping on Jay Leno and NBC. Heh.
The bad:
--The weather here was really pretty last week, but it got cold and rainy here again. Maybe I'll have to deal with some real winter after all. Poo.
--I was late for my History of the English Language class on Tuesday because I was trying to print out something for my Latin Textual Criticism class, and then the professor didn't even collect it. What a waste of time and stress.
--Sometimes I am struck by the terrible feeling that nobody here likes me. One tries not to be insecure about these things, but I sometimes feel like I screw up every single conversation or social interaction I have with anyone and everyone.
--I feel sick. I don't know if it's real, "You've got some virus or bacteria" sick, or "You haven't gotten enough sleep this week and you've eaten something that disagrees with you. Or too many beans" sick, but either way, my head and stomach and throat have felt a lot better.
--Politics makes me so freaking angry these days that I literally have to get up and run around the room sometimes, making imaginary speeches on C-SPAN. This latest big Supreme Court decision, the one where corporations can pour as much money as they like into the electoral process, makes me want to scream. Sometimes I want to defect from the world, or just form my own party, the "I give a shit about human life and happiness more than becoming a multi-billionaire" party.
--There was a big pain in the ass with my credit card today, which I don't even understand enough to go into. Meh, credit cards.
The...eh?
--Yeah, I think I'm going to do Bandom Big Bang again. I have no idea what's wrong with me.
Well. Okay. I think I've said everything I can think of.
Oh, wait! Meme.
1) I have made a list of 15 characters and assigned each character a number. I have a random mix of fandoms with which I think at least some of you should be familiar.
2) Without telling you who's on the list or the character's assigned number, I am taking questions about what you'd like to know about them. For example: why were 12 and 8 found chained together around a stop sign?
3) After everyone has responded, I will post the list and my answers.