Monday, November 24, 3008

Scrambled to get the last few papers graded before class today. Got them handed back just in time to collect the next batch. As usual, my first class went very well and my second class just stared at me when I asked them questions. Every once in a while we have a break through, but I hate having my day at school end like that. I came home from school, did a bit of grocery shopping, then pretty much ran down for the rest of the day with a huge headache. Roger and Jack went out to run errands, including a stop at Krispy Kreme to stock us up as we head into the Thanksgiving holiday. I stayed home and watched CSI.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

We all hunkered down today, recovering from various illnesses and much lack of sleep. I am so happy that Jack is back to his spirited self (though whining before bed in hopes of getting off school tomorrow!). Roger is getting over a big bad cold. I took the last of my antiobiotics this tonight. Fingers crossed that I won't take a dive again after very little sleep the last two nights. I spent a good part of my day grading papers. And I'm getting another big stack tomorrow. Blech. I love everything about teaching except grading papers. I need to learn how to stop procrastinating so I can enjoy more time without having the stacks hanging over my head! Honestly, I don't know how instructors with more than 40 students do it!

Saturday, November 22, 2008

Oh, it was a long, long, sleepless night. But Jack made it through. He's still feeling lousy tonight, but his stomach has settled and his fever has responded to Motrin. Roger hung out with him earlier today while I went to story time at the museum (Lily Toy Hong, who brought some of the Chinese antiques that were represented in her books for show and tell). I had lunch with friends, then got a bit of work done at the museum. My friend Lisa turned up with her daughter and I took them through the picture book exhibit. When I got home I hung out with Jack and we read for a while. Then he and Roger watched a movie while I took a nap. More hanging out and reading. Jack is now finally getting some much needed rest. 

Friday, November 21, 2008

Jack and I slept in this morning until after nine. I dropped him off at school on my way to UVU, where I oversaw peer reviews of research proposals and annotated bibliographies. Darn exciting. But I think that my students have a much clearer view of what they need to turn in to me next week. After school Jack went off to play at a friend's house and I hung out in my office, mostly not working. When Roger came home we went to a wedding celebration at a neighbor's house. Their son, who works at the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem, is getting married in the morning. A quiet evening at home until Jack threw up about 9:30. This happens extremely rarely. Another round about 11:00. It's nearly midnight now, and we're hoping he settles in to sleep. Poor guy.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

It was hard to get Jack to school, but we did it. He's got a cold and wasn't feeling particularly well. I told him he could call me if he was miserable. When I got to the high school, the librarian said the system still wasn't working well. Would I rather just take the day off? I still have a pretty hefty stack of papers I need to grade, so I went home to work on them, telling her to call me if the system came back up. At about 11:00 Jack called from the school for me to pick him up. The deal is that if he ever stays home sick or comes home sick he has to forego friends for the rest of the day. That usually keeps him in school, but I think he was a bit miserable. So I picked him up and we hung out for the rest of the day at home. I didn't get all of the papers graded. Crap.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

MLA part two. I had some candy left from Monday so I used it to reward correct answers. I totally lost track of time between my two classes talking with a couple of students and ended up nearly 20 minutes late to my 2:00 class. How embarrassing! Honestly, my brain is so untrustworthy anymore! It was all good, but I had to cram 50 minutes of instruction into 30 and that wasn't so easy. Luckily I had enough candy left for everyone to have some. I had a nice visit with Roger's sister Carol in the afternoon. Then I took Jack to Cub Scout Pack Meeting, where they decorated Christmas cookies, made candy cane reindeer and wrote letters to people. Jack chose to right a letter to Grandpa, and included a drawing of Utah with lots of landmarks he's been learning about (fourth graders here learn state history and geography).

Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Crazy day at the high school library today. The computer network was down. We could still check books in and out with a handheld scanner, but students had to have their ID card for scanning--no way to just enter their ID numbers. One class showed up without a teacher (a sub showed up about half an hour later). The librarian was teaching a class in another part of the school, so I was the only grownup. I couldn't believe I had to tell a group of boys that they couldn't watch ESPN three times! Every time I turned the television of, they turned it on! I had to be the mean mom. I don't like that part of my job. I've been reading The Faith Club (about three women--one Jewish, one Muslim, one Christian--who talk about their respective religions over the course of several years seeking understanding and common ground). One of my book clubs discussed it tonight. We had such a great time, and I came away feeling so blessed to have strong, intelligent, spiritual friends.

Monday, November 17, 2008

Up on time, showered and dressed, Jack to school, worked on getting organized for my classes. MLA citation system today. Took candy to get my students through. It all went fairly well, but honestly, you could spend weeks explaining a citation system! I try to do what I can in two class periods. One student very earnestly asked if I knew anything about the "CYA" citation system that his physics professor said he needed to use. I was so surprised, especially in the age of text messaging, that hardly anyone in the class new what CYA meant and that his professor was playing him. So if nothing else, my students all learned about the principle of CYA (which I think you only really learn if you have a highly bureaucratic job). I think my antibiotic prescription is helping. I feel more clearheaded.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Another Sunday has come and gone.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

A slow start this morning, but eventually I was functioning fairly well! Two days into the antibiotics and I'm feeling even more hopeful that I will be functioning normally soon. Huge turnout at story time today (Mark and Caralyn Beuhner came)--at least 80 children plus parents! I went out to lunch with friends Linda, Shelley and Brent (who is managing the development of the new sculpture garden at the museum). Brent treated us to a family style bowl of sizzling rice soup at the Mongolian Grill. Shelley and I took inventory of the picture books (we've broken even and are now making money even after getting another order in yesterday). I worked hard on getting all of the cords in the new point of sale system organized and crammed into the back of the case the monitor sits on so I could shut the back of it. What a rat's nest! I hung out for a bit more helping Shelley work on a brochure. Then Roger showed up to wrangle me home. We left Jack with Johnny and Benny and went out to dinner. I am now stuffed full, in my pajamas and tucked in to watch a bit television before bed. Yawn.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Roger is my hero. He took the day off today. He wasn't planning to spend it helping me, but he did anyway. Once again, I didn't feel well when I woke up. He called and made a doctor's appointment for me. The only opening she had was 1:15--right between my UVU classes. I had an in-class exercised planned (write 100 questions on your research topic!) and so I asked Roger to come with me to school. He was planning to spend the day working on a paper for a class he's taking, so I thought he'd get lots of work done while my students were working. Anyway, he came with me to my noon class, then I took the car and went to the doctor and he got my 2:00 class going on their assignment. I got back to school at 2:30. What a good guy! Plus he got to meet my students and see where I've been working. That was nice. They took my blood at the doctor's office to check for a few things, but decided that most likely I've been suffering from chronic sinus infections and so started me on a course of antibiotics. I am full of hope that I will feel better soon! In the evening Jack and I went with Roger to help him out with a video contest the BYU library was hosting, then we had dinner at Panda Express and did a bit of shopping at Target. I was worn out by the end of the day!

Thursday, November 13, 2008

I started out pretty strong today! Got Jack to school, went to a PTA meeting, went to work at the high school for a shorter shift than usual (and we were busy, busy today with lots of students), took a break for a bit in the afternoon, then went out for the evening to a library board meeting (it's my job to take minutes, which is so easy to do now with my trusty macbook!). When I got home after 9:00 I was thoroughly worn out. I am really, really tired of not feeling up to life.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

Worked steadily through my to-do list (get Jack to school, get organized for class, post office, photocopying handouts, teach class, get home, run to the grocery store), and then I stopped. It felt so good to stop.

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

I tried very hard to put in a good day's work at the high school library today. I spent most of my time buried in the stacks making sure books were in their proper order and reflowing some of the overcrowded shelves. So I didn't have to have much of a brain and that was good. Pretty much crashed when I got home. I went to bed at 7:00, woke up to help get Jack to bed, read for a bit, then went back to bed.

Monday, November 10, 2008

Home sick today. It was snowy and cold and I called the English department at UVU and asked them to post signs on my classroom door. Class cancelled. After I dropped Jack off at school, I climbed back in bed and slept. The only thing of note today was a nice long conversation with my mom, who is in the hospital having her second knee replacement surgery. She's doing well.

Sunday, November 9, 2008

A low-key day at home with the family. Not much to report except we all ate far too many Rice Krispy treats and Jack spent at least an hour carefully going through his latest Lego catalog putting together a list of kits he'd like for Christmas. He wrote the whole list out with item numbers and names, then prioritized his top six choices. Yes, it was a lengthy list.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Another fun story time at the museum. Roger and Jack have been a huge support this fall, coming to story time with me and taking pictures. Julie Olson was our guest artist, and she did a fabulous job. One of the books she illustrated (There's Always a Way, Annie McRae) is about a girl who wants to be so many different things when she grows up. Julie asked the kids what they want to be when they grow up. Jack raised his hand and said he wants to be the president of the Lego company. I think he's on the right track and we told him so--he's good with people, he's got a great imagination, he is intrigued by doing business and making money, and he's got the makings of a good engineer. Good news on the museum store front--we've just about broken even on all of the inventory I've brought in for the picture book show and we're only half way through the exhibition. The store doesn't do a lot of business, so it's a pretty big deal! Other good news: mom had knee replacement surgery on Thursday and she is doing well!

Friday, November 7, 2008

I had fun with my UVU classes today. For a mid-semester break from the rigors of research and academic writing, I had them do a creative writing piece and turned it into a competition. The topic? A brand new athletic shoe that I saw on the shoulder of the I-15 entrance ramp while driving the other day. The students were free to do anything at all with that topic, use any writing style or device, develop the topic any direction they wanted to. I will be announcing the winners in class on Monday. Most of my students were really energized by the task. It was fun to hear them spontaneously shout out, "Oh, I've got the perfect idea!" The students who struggled were actually some of my top students, so I felt good about stretching them. Another memory to keep from today: dinner (actually breakfast from the breakfast all day menu) out with Roger at the Model A Cafe.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Worked hard reorganizing books in our non-fiction section at the high school library today. Talked with a couple of teachers about some of the things they're doing with research and writing. I'm trying to figure ways to exploit the fact that I work both at the high school and UVU to help further the cause of critical thinking, research and writing skill development. Thought I forgot PTA meeting this morning, but later realized that it was postponed until next week. I did forget to attend a Relief Society dinner tonight. I'm sad about that. We got an invitation to a party to celebrate the passing of the library bond, which was held in an indoor sport court at a friend's house. Even though it was all grown ups besides Jack, he had lots of fun! We played a couple of games, including a game where we blew up balloons and let them go, hoping to land on a prize. Whoever came closest won the prize. It was hilarious! The balloons were very unpredictable. Jack was the only one who got his balloon to actually land on a prize, and he got a big round of applause.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

I was determined to pass back papers to my classes today (I kept waiting to feel well to grade them--I don't like grading papers without a brain!). I made it! I decided to spend class today discussing an editorial that I had them read and respond to about a week ago about some of the reasons we've gone into a ditch and how we can get out of it (primarily by pay attention to education and infrastructure). I wanted to tie it in to the choices we all make as individuals (like my choice to teach, and my students' choice to go to college). The discussion in my first class was dynamic and useful and fun. My second class? I felt like I was pulling teeth. Later in the afternoon, I attended a worthwhile staff meeting for adjunct instructors (we spend time sharing ideas and passing ideas by one another for input). On the way home I stopped by the museum to say hi to artist Will Terry, who spoke at Evening for Educators, an ongoing series there. I invited Roger and Jack down to see the opening of a John Telford photography exhibit and to meet him. His photos are amazing!

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

What a day, packed full of turning a corner. I voted when I dropped Jack off at school (only about 10 people in line ahead of me). I spent most of my time at the high school reflowing the stacks to make room for all of the magazines I've finished cataloguing. I had quite a few conversations with students about the election, some leaving me frustrated with the misconceptions that people have, some giving me hope in our future. One of my neighbor's kids truly believed that if Obama was elected, he would start killing all of the two-year-olds in the country. What?! I tried hard to focus on grading papers in between getting Jack to cub scouts, emailing, talking on the phone, and peeking at election results. At the end of the day, we watched both McCain and Obama speak. And I checked the results of the library bond, which looked quite positive. My main wish is that we will pull together as a nation to get through these difficult times, looking to Obama for all of the good he can and will contribute to healing our divides if we will only let him. 

Monday, November 3, 2008

I woke up today without a fever! I paced myself though. Got some work done after dropping Jack off at school, headed up to campus and oversaw my students doing peer reviews on the paper they're working on, came home and took a bit of a break, went with Roger to the museum to get the point of sale system set up, graded some papers, read to Jack, went to sleep at a very decent hour.

Sunday, November 2, 2008

Church was eventful. Jack shared a scripture in Primary closing exercises (Mosiah 5:7), and Roger and I got new callings (jobs). We are on the family preparedness committee and our job is to help everyone build their food storage--getting the word out on good sales on good food storage items, helping some of the elderly get food, etc. Food storage is not one of our strong points, though we do have some and try to pick up extra things every time we shop. And comparison shopping is not one of our strong points. So we've got a lot to learn. That might actually turn into a strength for a job like this. We totally understand the people who haven't really got a grip on the whole idea. Actually, I'm excited to be doing something real and concrete to help my neighbors.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Fun story time at the museum with Sherry Meidell, then lots of inventory work and a meeting with the museum director. Roger has tackled putting together the hardware for the museum store point of sale system, which required far more technical expertise than I was capable of summoning. We're going to take it down to the museum on Monday evening so I can start entering the inventory. After a bit of a break, Roger, Jack and I headed to The Training Table and Target. Apparently the theme of the night was places that begin with "T." I was thoroughly hammered by the time we got home. 

Friday, October 31, 2008

A UVU day, but my students did in class exercises so I didn't have to pull my brain together quite so much. I left my students in my last class working (they'll turn in their work on Monday) and left a bit early to get to the Halloween Parade at Jack's school. I barely made it! Jack took a bit of a break after school (he's been really grumpy lately), then hooked up with friends and lots of candy and trick-or-treating. I think Jack has more fun handing out candy than getting it. I like that about him. Oh, and Jack dressed up as Indiana Jones this year (not his first choice, but we weren't willing to shell out the dough for the clone trooper helmet--hmm, maybe that's why he's been grumpy).