Quick ten bullet post, while I’ve got the time:
1) I’ve been listening to The Magnetic Fields a lot lately. “I Don’t Want To Get Over You” is one of my favorite songs of recent memory. My brother, the Colorado hippie, believe it or not, had the Magnetic Fields boxed set mixed in with his discs. I’ll have to ask him what he thought of it.
2) The predicted snow turned out to be a non-factor today. I don’t think I’ve ever seen the weather people muff a prediction so badly. However, the warmer temps, combined with yesterday’s snow, allowed T, S, and I to hit a cemetery hill and snowboard for an hour or so this afternoon. Both boys are getting better every month. I actually attempted two trips down the hill. I will only saw I am glad no cameras were present to see me fall off the board and flail my arms in a desperate attempt to remain upright.
3) I have “Marie Antionette” from Netflix. I don’t know when I’ll get a chance to start the film. Maybe tomorrow night.
4) M will be out of town next Friday morning through Sunday afternoon. Plus, the kids are off Friday. Crazy. A babysitter will watch the boys from 2-5 on Saturday. I’m not sure what we’ll do, but we’ll manage. If the weather is ok we may hit the zoo for a few hours Friday morning. Thank God for movies and video games. Seriously.
5) There is an outside chance I will defend my dissertation by the time M and the boys leave for NY in late July. I would love to finish by then so I could enjoy the two weeks without work in the back of my mind. I think I have a decent shot of defending by then. We’ll see. Maybe I’ll accompany the family out to NY then splurge on a trip to Boston or NYC.
6) My left shoulder/chest hurt lately. I can’t tell if a muscle or artery or whatever is causing the pain. Maybe I’m having a heart attack. Please remember to cremate me, please.
7) I’ve been reading Ha Jin’s “The Crazed” lately. Great book. He’s got such a strong, masterfully simple approach to language. I’ve also been reading the book on Buddhism and a collection of Bacon interviews. I like Bacon. I know some art critics think he’s gross and obvious, but I don’t know, maybe more art should be gross and obvious. I want to see the show again.
8) My meditation practice has picked up. In fact, I hope to meditate as soon as I finish this entry.
9) Tomorrow will be a long day, probably thirteen hours from the time I leave for work to the time I return, so I MUST sleep tonight. No pressure!
10) T and I hung out on the couch today. I felt like we connected a bit more. The snowboarding with him and S helped as well. My kids are great.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
I’m sitting on the floor of my home office, back to the wall, next to the window. The wind is shaking the glass, no, the entire house, every thirty seconds or so. The weather channel has the wind at 25MPH with gusts up to 40MPH. These gusts seem to be the kind that don’t proceed directly from one point to the other but instead weave back and forth before expiring. The wind is picking up snow, too, what sounds like small pellets, and battering the window. My Unitarian Universalist church, along with most churches, cancelled services tomorrow because of winds that, along with a forecast with seven to fourteen inches of additional snow, are meant to render driving dangerous. We’ll see. The snow hasn’t started up again yet. I’ve never heard of church cancellations before. M said that maybe churches where the priests or ministers or whatever live next door will hold services, but most others won’t. I thought Catholics, at least, were required to go, but it’s been a long time since I was a Catholic, so I haven’t exactly read the rule book or anything.
Today was decent. I woke at about four, meditated, and ate breakfast early. M and I watched most of the Dixie Chicks documentary “Shut Up and Sing” before dawn. I liked the film quite a bit…great analysis of how both the media can take a message and distort it to the ends of the earth and how human beings respond to the impact the scenario has on their lives. T was still at his sleepover, so S and I hit the new coffee shop in town. He had been asking to check it out since he knew I took his brother earlier in the week. S had hot chocolate with whipped cream, sticking his nose deep in the whipped cream before he drank. He seemed happy to hang out with me. He and I don’t hang out enough. I felt the same way later, when T returned from his sleepover. I hardly saw him at all today, and that almost never happens. He wanted to watch Kim Possible with me, later, but by then I had fallen asleep. Maybe we can watch it together in the morning. Anyway, I spent most of the afternoon reading and watching basketball. M took S to his basketball, at the YMCA, so N and I played upstairs. I took a bath in the late afternoon, read Ha Jin for a while, then fell asleep. I should probably think about returning to bed soon. Not sure what I’ll do the rest of today, but I could use a nice, quiet afternoon. Now, when I say “quiet afternoon” I mean both mentally and physically. I have a horrible thought pattern in which I will rile myself up, usually about work, on these weekends when I’m not engaged in anything distracting. I worry about this pattern. More later.
Today was decent. I woke at about four, meditated, and ate breakfast early. M and I watched most of the Dixie Chicks documentary “Shut Up and Sing” before dawn. I liked the film quite a bit…great analysis of how both the media can take a message and distort it to the ends of the earth and how human beings respond to the impact the scenario has on their lives. T was still at his sleepover, so S and I hit the new coffee shop in town. He had been asking to check it out since he knew I took his brother earlier in the week. S had hot chocolate with whipped cream, sticking his nose deep in the whipped cream before he drank. He seemed happy to hang out with me. He and I don’t hang out enough. I felt the same way later, when T returned from his sleepover. I hardly saw him at all today, and that almost never happens. He wanted to watch Kim Possible with me, later, but by then I had fallen asleep. Maybe we can watch it together in the morning. Anyway, I spent most of the afternoon reading and watching basketball. M took S to his basketball, at the YMCA, so N and I played upstairs. I took a bath in the late afternoon, read Ha Jin for a while, then fell asleep. I should probably think about returning to bed soon. Not sure what I’ll do the rest of today, but I could use a nice, quiet afternoon. Now, when I say “quiet afternoon” I mean both mentally and physically. I have a horrible thought pattern in which I will rile myself up, usually about work, on these weekends when I’m not engaged in anything distracting. I worry about this pattern. More later.
Saturday, February 24, 2007
Early morning, before dawn. A late winter snowstorm is swirling outside. Apparently a thin band, perhaps only twenty miles wide, is dropping about four inches of powder on the area. About eight additional ten inches are expected later. The snow is pure and white. Snowflakes that, by the time they reach the top of the house, are on side of the yard, can easily be blow back and forth across the yard a few times before they hit the ground. Walking through this type of storm is concurrently exhausting and exhilarating. Maybe Shadow and I will go out later.
Yesterday was an interesting day. For some reason I could not sleep Thursday night, not exactly sure why, so I only managed three or four hours of sleep before heading to work without playing basketball beforehand. No sleep plus no basketball is a dangerous equation. I was on edge and paranoid through most of the morning. We had an SOE meeting, no big deal, I had heard most of what was on the agenda before. Anyway, I’m trying to pull back and not get involved in too much of the bullshit, so except for a discussion on test results, I stayed out of the way. I tried to pass the baton over to some others on update issues, too. You can’t win, I guess. The landscape is changing. I’ll survive. See, my paranoia is emerging right now. Mary and I cut out at lunch, ate at Beans and Barley (passable burrito) and caught “Volver” at 1PM. Penelope Cruz. Whoa. She was fantastic, and she’s one of those women who seems to be getting more beautiful as she gets older. Why on earth did she date Tom Cruise? I can’t quite get past that. Anyway, I enjoyed the film quite a bit. I like the Oriental Theater. The lobby has that art hipster feel combined with a “we could close at any minute vibe. I’m reminded of the beautiful, run down movie palaces of my youth. The Patio, The Pickwick, the Des Plaines, The Portage…I remember you all.
After leaving the theater, about 3PM, I considered driving home but T was at a friend’s for a sleepover, S had a friend over, and Maura didn’t seem to mind my staying out later, so I cut over to MAM to catch the Bacon show. I thought, well, I’m already almost to the Museum, and I’d be putting off the show forever, might as well check it out. Although the exhibit was pretty small, smaller than usual, I thought, the work was brilliant. Bacon’s work is hard to explain. In some rare instances his work can rather, I don’t know, collegiate is the word that comes to mind, but the great majority of the time he’s dark and brilliant. He’s not very subtle, I guess, but his sincerity and craftsmanship, and the power of his message, are piercing. Punk rock! Although I’m trying to not spend much money I bought the exhibition catalog and a book of interviews with the author. I don’t buy huge and expensive art books very much but these seemed essential, like my Robert Franks and Odilion Redon (who reminded me of Bacon) catalogs.
I felt, I don’t know, sticky by the time I arrived home. I wanted to take a bath but M was mad, I think, that I wanted to ditch her as soon as I walked in the door, so I hung out instead. I read the NY Times and Wall Street Journal (regular Friday purchases) while S watched Cyberchase. N was so tired he went upstairs and fell asleep on his own. S said he missed T, off at the sleepover, so he and I read through the Atlas in his room, talking about countries in Europe, mostly, before falling asleep. I kept on pushing his over while he slept…he never stops moving. Still, I slept pretty well, I guess. Uneasy dreams, but I can’t remember much other than M was involved. I meditated this morning after I woke. More later.
Yesterday was an interesting day. For some reason I could not sleep Thursday night, not exactly sure why, so I only managed three or four hours of sleep before heading to work without playing basketball beforehand. No sleep plus no basketball is a dangerous equation. I was on edge and paranoid through most of the morning. We had an SOE meeting, no big deal, I had heard most of what was on the agenda before. Anyway, I’m trying to pull back and not get involved in too much of the bullshit, so except for a discussion on test results, I stayed out of the way. I tried to pass the baton over to some others on update issues, too. You can’t win, I guess. The landscape is changing. I’ll survive. See, my paranoia is emerging right now. Mary and I cut out at lunch, ate at Beans and Barley (passable burrito) and caught “Volver” at 1PM. Penelope Cruz. Whoa. She was fantastic, and she’s one of those women who seems to be getting more beautiful as she gets older. Why on earth did she date Tom Cruise? I can’t quite get past that. Anyway, I enjoyed the film quite a bit. I like the Oriental Theater. The lobby has that art hipster feel combined with a “we could close at any minute vibe. I’m reminded of the beautiful, run down movie palaces of my youth. The Patio, The Pickwick, the Des Plaines, The Portage…I remember you all.
After leaving the theater, about 3PM, I considered driving home but T was at a friend’s for a sleepover, S had a friend over, and Maura didn’t seem to mind my staying out later, so I cut over to MAM to catch the Bacon show. I thought, well, I’m already almost to the Museum, and I’d be putting off the show forever, might as well check it out. Although the exhibit was pretty small, smaller than usual, I thought, the work was brilliant. Bacon’s work is hard to explain. In some rare instances his work can rather, I don’t know, collegiate is the word that comes to mind, but the great majority of the time he’s dark and brilliant. He’s not very subtle, I guess, but his sincerity and craftsmanship, and the power of his message, are piercing. Punk rock! Although I’m trying to not spend much money I bought the exhibition catalog and a book of interviews with the author. I don’t buy huge and expensive art books very much but these seemed essential, like my Robert Franks and Odilion Redon (who reminded me of Bacon) catalogs.
I felt, I don’t know, sticky by the time I arrived home. I wanted to take a bath but M was mad, I think, that I wanted to ditch her as soon as I walked in the door, so I hung out instead. I read the NY Times and Wall Street Journal (regular Friday purchases) while S watched Cyberchase. N was so tired he went upstairs and fell asleep on his own. S said he missed T, off at the sleepover, so he and I read through the Atlas in his room, talking about countries in Europe, mostly, before falling asleep. I kept on pushing his over while he slept…he never stops moving. Still, I slept pretty well, I guess. Uneasy dreams, but I can’t remember much other than M was involved. I meditated this morning after I woke. More later.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Rare that ten days pass between entries, but I haven’t written because I’ve been writing in other ways. I’ve finished a draft of my dissertation chapter four, including an analytical framework I quite like, which means my committee will probably want me to change everything. I don’t know. I’ve also been reading a lot. I feel like I’m starting to understand Buddhism on a higher level than before. Of course, that doesn’t mean my behavior has changed. Well, I can’t say that across the board. Yesterday in the post office I practiced standing meditation instead of steaming about the goddamn woman in front of me paying for a two dollar shipment by check. I did manage to calm down some. However, earlier in the day M and I fought over how to best approach purchasing a new washing machine and I grew tangibly angry for the first time in a while. I hate when my opinion gets dismissed, or even worse, feeling when my opinion is entertained in only the most token manner possible. I raised my voice for the first time in at least a year, if not longer. I get tired of having to defend my perceptions all the time. Anyway, I hear that expressing anger is good for you or whatever, I’m not so sure that’s true on my part, as I felt like I was going to have a heart attack afterwards. Sometimes I don’t think I’m meant to live very long. I don’t mean to be a drama queen. My body’s gone through a lot of stress.
Anyway, now I’m up, 1:40AM, after falling asleep around 8PM. I’ve already caught five hours of sleep. Maybe I’ll catch a couple more before I hit basketball. We’ll see. I suppose I could work on my dissertation. I took three days off of work this week to focus on academia, and while I didn’t use every moment to the best of my ability, I did manage, as I said, to finish a chapter four draft that doesn’t completely suck. Writing is hard, though. While I can appreciate the solitude that accompanies writing, my brain is fried after I’ve stared at a computer screen for six hours in a row. I rarely, if ever, go eight hours in a row without doing something on the computer. Maybe I should cut back on computer usage.
Ok, ten point post, first one in a while:
T has been in trouble at school lately, more than he has been all year. He’s got a new teacher who’s trying to figure out the ropes. Both T and the teacher will eventually figure out the scenario. Last night T and I hit Harry’s for dinner before picking up books at the library. I had to explain tipping to him, which was pretty funny (he wanted to take the cash off the table and hand the money directly to the waitress), but I’m glad we went out. He and I don’t hang outside of the house or library enough. A developmentally disabled woman behind him “creeped him out” (his words). I’m trying to avoid doing what my father did to me, e.g. coming down like a ton of bricks every time I did something wrong at school. Of course I want to set limits as well. If T’s school sends another note home this week no new Wii game and no sleepover at a friend’s on Friday. I also have told T I believe in him, and I know he’s a good person. We’ll see what happens.
I’ve been listening to the latest Shins CD a lot. That “Sea Legs” song, in particular, is excellent.
I’ve been skipping around, bookwise, after running into the brick wall that is the African-American dialect halfway through “Cloud Atlas”. “Awakening the Buddha Within”, a book that seems to be more or less an introduction to Buddhist practice and history, has been great. Last night I also started Ha Jin’s “The Crazed”. I liked the first ten pages or so. The book is about an academic who has a stroke, so I feel like I can relate.
The temperatures have risen above thirty, close to forty, over the last two days. Thank God. This winter has worn me down. I’m starting to understand why people move south. However, I don’t like alligators or evangelical Christians. Is there somewhere in the middle we can move? I’m afraid we are in the middle, if you include Canada, anyway.
The new coffee shop in town seems to be doing well. I hope the shop survives. Yesterday I met a student at the space to talk through action research. I like the space because, if you get the right table, you can watch traffic move in all four directions. Maybe I’ll work there today instead of working at home.
I finished “This Film is Not Yet Rated” this weekend. The second half of the film turned out to be pretty strong. I can’t complain. I just sent back that and “The Last Kiss” (M watched most of that movie, I just walked in and out of the room) with “Shut Up and Sing” and the latest Sofia Coppola film next in my queue.
Yesterday I picked up bird seed and filled the bird feeder for the first time in a couple of weeks. My apologies, birds. I feel horribly guilty when the birds have nothing to eat.
I also ordered seed/flower catalogs online. I know the serious gardeners already have theirs, but I’m not a serious gardener. However, I do want to acknowledge that I would not be surprised to see daffodils in a little over a month. Right?
A few hours ago I dreamt that a football player was dying on the field and his friends were crying. This intense dream hurt my chest.
M has been working with N on his letters lately, and the work seems to be paying off. He’s doing well. Last night he and I took up the whole couch and chatted about school. His hair, all long and curly, makes me happy.
Anyway, now I’m up, 1:40AM, after falling asleep around 8PM. I’ve already caught five hours of sleep. Maybe I’ll catch a couple more before I hit basketball. We’ll see. I suppose I could work on my dissertation. I took three days off of work this week to focus on academia, and while I didn’t use every moment to the best of my ability, I did manage, as I said, to finish a chapter four draft that doesn’t completely suck. Writing is hard, though. While I can appreciate the solitude that accompanies writing, my brain is fried after I’ve stared at a computer screen for six hours in a row. I rarely, if ever, go eight hours in a row without doing something on the computer. Maybe I should cut back on computer usage.
Ok, ten point post, first one in a while:
T has been in trouble at school lately, more than he has been all year. He’s got a new teacher who’s trying to figure out the ropes. Both T and the teacher will eventually figure out the scenario. Last night T and I hit Harry’s for dinner before picking up books at the library. I had to explain tipping to him, which was pretty funny (he wanted to take the cash off the table and hand the money directly to the waitress), but I’m glad we went out. He and I don’t hang outside of the house or library enough. A developmentally disabled woman behind him “creeped him out” (his words). I’m trying to avoid doing what my father did to me, e.g. coming down like a ton of bricks every time I did something wrong at school. Of course I want to set limits as well. If T’s school sends another note home this week no new Wii game and no sleepover at a friend’s on Friday. I also have told T I believe in him, and I know he’s a good person. We’ll see what happens.
I’ve been listening to the latest Shins CD a lot. That “Sea Legs” song, in particular, is excellent.
I’ve been skipping around, bookwise, after running into the brick wall that is the African-American dialect halfway through “Cloud Atlas”. “Awakening the Buddha Within”, a book that seems to be more or less an introduction to Buddhist practice and history, has been great. Last night I also started Ha Jin’s “The Crazed”. I liked the first ten pages or so. The book is about an academic who has a stroke, so I feel like I can relate.
The temperatures have risen above thirty, close to forty, over the last two days. Thank God. This winter has worn me down. I’m starting to understand why people move south. However, I don’t like alligators or evangelical Christians. Is there somewhere in the middle we can move? I’m afraid we are in the middle, if you include Canada, anyway.
The new coffee shop in town seems to be doing well. I hope the shop survives. Yesterday I met a student at the space to talk through action research. I like the space because, if you get the right table, you can watch traffic move in all four directions. Maybe I’ll work there today instead of working at home.
I finished “This Film is Not Yet Rated” this weekend. The second half of the film turned out to be pretty strong. I can’t complain. I just sent back that and “The Last Kiss” (M watched most of that movie, I just walked in and out of the room) with “Shut Up and Sing” and the latest Sofia Coppola film next in my queue.
Yesterday I picked up bird seed and filled the bird feeder for the first time in a couple of weeks. My apologies, birds. I feel horribly guilty when the birds have nothing to eat.
I also ordered seed/flower catalogs online. I know the serious gardeners already have theirs, but I’m not a serious gardener. However, I do want to acknowledge that I would not be surprised to see daffodils in a little over a month. Right?
A few hours ago I dreamt that a football player was dying on the field and his friends were crying. This intense dream hurt my chest.
M has been working with N on his letters lately, and the work seems to be paying off. He’s doing well. Last night he and I took up the whole couch and chatted about school. His hair, all long and curly, makes me happy.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
Quick dream post…I had a dream that M and I were operating a hot dog cart outside the local library on a summer day. One of the neighbor kids was here, helping some, and the boys were around as well. I was most interesting in opening and closing all of the drawers on the hot dog cart. M had put a ton of extension cords in a drawer, so I cleaned that out. I bought a new kind of hot dog, tried of a southwestern style thing, and tried it out in the boiler, but of course I couldn’t taste the product. The neighbor kid had a Chicago Bulls patch on his clothes. More later. I was as exhausted last night as I’ve been in a long, long time. I crashed. I want to talk through what that means later.
Thursday, February 08, 2007
Tired, but a decent type of tired, as I feel as if I’ve accomplished much over the last few days. Yesterday was probably my most productive dissertation day in long time. I rattled off about twelve pages in four or five hours, a lot for this type of writing, and I felt the quality of the writing was strong. I remember reading once that Steven King set a minimum word limit for what he had to produce every day, and if he met it early, great, he took the rest of the day off. I try to write ten pages on Wednesdays, but since I was on a roll, I pushed further. I could have a decent chapter four draft completed in a couple weeks. I will finish this paper eventually, and I stand a decent chance of knocking the sucker out by mid-summer.
Yesterday I worked at home, mostly at the dining room table, after basketball. A friend and I managed a minor argument over the fact he tries to coach everybody down the court every goddamn sequence. He drives me crazy. I felt like an asshole after ragging on him, though, so we did the guy thing and tried to compliment each other’s play through the rest of the game. I played this morning as well, the first Tuesday/Thursday game in a while. Not much had changed, decent game, a little slower than M/W/F, and a guy shot at the wrong hoop. I felt like I didn’t get a minute to breathe today at work, but I’m well positioned, I hope, for two long meetings tomorrow at work. Maybe the entire day will be a wash. I hope not. I’d rather not worry about work this weekend. I could use a day with my mind off the office. Tonight T and I hit the library. I was pissed earlier in the evening because T was acting like a jerk at the thought of S coming with us to the library, but he and I went anyway after S decided he didn’t want to go. I do appreciate the fact that T likes the library. He wanted to find some “choose your own adventure” books for silent reading at school. Tomorrow, if I can ditch the office early enough, I’ll pick up the boys from school and take them to check out the latest Port coffee shop. I helped the boys get to sleep, as M isn’t feeling very well, then watched “The Office”, “Scrubs”, and the first few minutes of “30 Rock”. Maybe I’ll read some David Mitchell before bed. Good night.
Yesterday I worked at home, mostly at the dining room table, after basketball. A friend and I managed a minor argument over the fact he tries to coach everybody down the court every goddamn sequence. He drives me crazy. I felt like an asshole after ragging on him, though, so we did the guy thing and tried to compliment each other’s play through the rest of the game. I played this morning as well, the first Tuesday/Thursday game in a while. Not much had changed, decent game, a little slower than M/W/F, and a guy shot at the wrong hoop. I felt like I didn’t get a minute to breathe today at work, but I’m well positioned, I hope, for two long meetings tomorrow at work. Maybe the entire day will be a wash. I hope not. I’d rather not worry about work this weekend. I could use a day with my mind off the office. Tonight T and I hit the library. I was pissed earlier in the evening because T was acting like a jerk at the thought of S coming with us to the library, but he and I went anyway after S decided he didn’t want to go. I do appreciate the fact that T likes the library. He wanted to find some “choose your own adventure” books for silent reading at school. Tomorrow, if I can ditch the office early enough, I’ll pick up the boys from school and take them to check out the latest Port coffee shop. I helped the boys get to sleep, as M isn’t feeling very well, then watched “The Office”, “Scrubs”, and the first few minutes of “30 Rock”. Maybe I’ll read some David Mitchell before bed. Good night.
Tuesday, February 06, 2007
Hm…the hour feels much later than 8:39PM. The last two and a half days or so have been dangerously cold. T and S’s school closed bother yesterday and today. I, of course, drove into work. The Saturn held up well. I had to crank the engine later in the afternoon, both days, but she started without much difficulty. I love that car. Anyway, I was reminded of our apartment on Pine Grove fourteen years ago the year that similar (although slightly colder, if I remember correctly) conditions befell Chicago in early January of my first teaching year. I remember I had to move my car from inner drive to another spot because of the stupid city parking rules, and I was so cold walking the few blocks that my snot froze in my nostrils. M, the cats, and I spent most of the frigid stretch huddled beneath the covers on the waterbed.
The last few days passed easily enough. On Sunday I skipped church and worked on the dissertation for a couple of hours. After the boys arrived home I decided to clear my head, rather than drive into work, so I hung out, watched the pre-Super Bowl coverage, and started “Thank You For Smoking”. M and the boys watched some of the game with me. The kids were more or less attentive, I guess, and I wasn’t entirely disappointed by the Bears. Hey, no one thought they would get past the first round of the playoffs, let alone the Super Bowl. They’re a young team. They’ll be back next year. After the game I finished “Thank You For Smoking”, which I liked quite a lot (Aaron Eckhart is brilliant), then fell asleep by about midnight or so. I had read online that a few local districts had closed for Monday, even early Sunday night, and I wasn’t surprised Monday morning when the local district called off the day. Work wasn’t bad, a clean day of paperwork and conferencing. The students were pissed, more often than not, about our failure to cancel U level classes, but hey, I’d cancel the classes if that were my call, but it’s not. I stopped at Trader Joe’s on the way home (tofu, juice, a couple of other things) and did the dad thing through the early evening. The local districts cancelled today’s classes by early last night, so at least the boys knew ahead of time that they were off again. M arranged for friends to come over, especially for T, because he loses his mind without social interaction. I drove to work and managed another more or less productive day. I might…might…be caught up by Friday. Yay me. Tonight was laid back. M isn’t feeling well. Tomorrow is a dissertation day. More then, from the library or coffee shop.
The last few days passed easily enough. On Sunday I skipped church and worked on the dissertation for a couple of hours. After the boys arrived home I decided to clear my head, rather than drive into work, so I hung out, watched the pre-Super Bowl coverage, and started “Thank You For Smoking”. M and the boys watched some of the game with me. The kids were more or less attentive, I guess, and I wasn’t entirely disappointed by the Bears. Hey, no one thought they would get past the first round of the playoffs, let alone the Super Bowl. They’re a young team. They’ll be back next year. After the game I finished “Thank You For Smoking”, which I liked quite a lot (Aaron Eckhart is brilliant), then fell asleep by about midnight or so. I had read online that a few local districts had closed for Monday, even early Sunday night, and I wasn’t surprised Monday morning when the local district called off the day. Work wasn’t bad, a clean day of paperwork and conferencing. The students were pissed, more often than not, about our failure to cancel U level classes, but hey, I’d cancel the classes if that were my call, but it’s not. I stopped at Trader Joe’s on the way home (tofu, juice, a couple of other things) and did the dad thing through the early evening. The local districts cancelled today’s classes by early last night, so at least the boys knew ahead of time that they were off again. M arranged for friends to come over, especially for T, because he loses his mind without social interaction. I drove to work and managed another more or less productive day. I might…might…be caught up by Friday. Yay me. Tonight was laid back. M isn’t feeling well. Tomorrow is a dissertation day. More then, from the library or coffee shop.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Some issues at work, won’t go into them here, but I’m feeling more confident with my leadership day by day. I don’t know. Perhaps I’ve walked through the fire and come out the other side with my skin hardened against the coals. Maybe I’m just better at this with a few years, including a year of conflict, under my belt. I like to think I’ve earned the respect of my colleagues. If I haven’t, I’m not sure I care all that much (well, that’s not entirely true, I value some colleagues’ perceptions quite a bit). I feel like I know who I am, and I know what I’m doing. Maybe tomorrow I’ll feel differently. Probably.
I’m writing from the upstairs bedroom, where I’ve sequestered my computer and my dissertation notes. A beta fighting fish swims in a tank on the desk next to me. I’m tired, and I should probably sleep soon. Here’s a ten point post catching up on the last couple of days:
I’ve recovered from the flu, more or less, but I’m still tired. I worked all day today. T and N appear fine. Yesterday was rough, as N was overscheduled (in my opinion, at least) and quite upset in the morning. I played basketball Wednesday morning (someone hurt himself badly enough to warrant a call to the paramedics) then rode the bike and lifted during the boys’ kickball session. I lost five pounds or so during the stomach flu bout, so I thought I’d take advantage of the head start to see if I could lose some more. Viva stomach flu!
I haven’t had a chance to catch the Bacon show at MAM yet. Stupid schedule.
I had my hair cut yesterday after seeing myself in a short film I took with the digital camera. It’s short, but not entirely dorky short (I hope). The hair stylist (is that what you call the woman who cuts your hair?) was pissed and chatty about a receptionist who called in sick. I had hardly left home in five days, so I was ready to gossip.
Tomorrow I will wear my Bears NFC champ shirt to work. I’ve been saving it like a model saves a Chanel gown for, er, whatever models attend.
This weekend the temps are supposed to fall near zero DURING THE DAY. I take back all my concerns about global warming.
I need to reconnect with the kid I’ve been mentoring at church. I was a good mentor who has morphed into shitty mentor. Time to get back into gear.
This morning M and I fought over whether or not we had peanuts in the cabinet. This was a proud moment in our marriage, rest assured.
I’ve been reading more to T and S at night this week. I normally read with N some, but M usually picks a novel and reads the book to the boys. She’s been busy, so I’ve been reading the novel, called “The City of Sparks”, with the kids. Fun.
The latest National Geographic has an article on the heart (a bad Valentine’s Day connection, I think) that outlines, in one of those boxes on the side of the articles, factors that could play into a heart attack. Apparently I’m going to die within the next eight to ten minutes. Seriously, I had all of concerns except the non-exercise one.
* I’ve been reading Dante and Gaiman off and on. I’m too tired tonight for either, though. Time to sleep.
I’m writing from the upstairs bedroom, where I’ve sequestered my computer and my dissertation notes. A beta fighting fish swims in a tank on the desk next to me. I’m tired, and I should probably sleep soon. Here’s a ten point post catching up on the last couple of days:
I’ve recovered from the flu, more or less, but I’m still tired. I worked all day today. T and N appear fine. Yesterday was rough, as N was overscheduled (in my opinion, at least) and quite upset in the morning. I played basketball Wednesday morning (someone hurt himself badly enough to warrant a call to the paramedics) then rode the bike and lifted during the boys’ kickball session. I lost five pounds or so during the stomach flu bout, so I thought I’d take advantage of the head start to see if I could lose some more. Viva stomach flu!
I haven’t had a chance to catch the Bacon show at MAM yet. Stupid schedule.
I had my hair cut yesterday after seeing myself in a short film I took with the digital camera. It’s short, but not entirely dorky short (I hope). The hair stylist (is that what you call the woman who cuts your hair?) was pissed and chatty about a receptionist who called in sick. I had hardly left home in five days, so I was ready to gossip.
Tomorrow I will wear my Bears NFC champ shirt to work. I’ve been saving it like a model saves a Chanel gown for, er, whatever models attend.
This weekend the temps are supposed to fall near zero DURING THE DAY. I take back all my concerns about global warming.
I need to reconnect with the kid I’ve been mentoring at church. I was a good mentor who has morphed into shitty mentor. Time to get back into gear.
This morning M and I fought over whether or not we had peanuts in the cabinet. This was a proud moment in our marriage, rest assured.
I’ve been reading more to T and S at night this week. I normally read with N some, but M usually picks a novel and reads the book to the boys. She’s been busy, so I’ve been reading the novel, called “The City of Sparks”, with the kids. Fun.
The latest National Geographic has an article on the heart (a bad Valentine’s Day connection, I think) that outlines, in one of those boxes on the side of the articles, factors that could play into a heart attack. Apparently I’m going to die within the next eight to ten minutes. Seriously, I had all of concerns except the non-exercise one.
* I’ve been reading Dante and Gaiman off and on. I’m too tired tonight for either, though. Time to sleep.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
