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dribbles and drabbles
Jan. 9th, 2005 08:24 amThe sky is gray, the temp is cool, the air is moist and in spite of that i feel pretty good. i stepped on the scale today. 1 week, 1.5 pounds released. Considering how the past week began, i find this an encouraging sign.
i went into work yesterday to collate the materials for the research course. i have always kept a hard copy of individual assignments and a file of them on the office computer, but i have never put everything together in one packet. i found a couple of lessons and exercises missing, and a few things i want to revise/redo next semester, but on the whole i am even more pleased with the course seeing it all together in one place. i think i have even convinced myself to be open to any suggested additions or changes K may want to make. i did not print out the quizzes, i didn't want to leave them out on my desk as a temptation to anyone who might drop in, but i did include in an appendix of sorts extra exercises of the reading skills and writing skills type, along with the grading rubrics. i am fairly certain she is going to want more explicit grammar teaching and, at the very least, a midsemester exam. i have not quite decided how i will adress the grammar should it come up. If she wants to come up with a midsemester test, she can go for it. i would help, but i don't see a need, the quizzes, in my mind are a much more immediate indicator of where the students do or don't need assistance. It seems that the more i anticipate where she might perceive flaws, the easier it will be for me to address them. This is not a cop out, but considering i have put this course together single handedly, and in only 4 semesters, i see it as a solid piece of curricula. As always, a second set of eyes can point out improvements to almost anything, but i don't think i will feel the need to go on the defensive with her, as others seem to think will be the case.
i pinched a nerve in my neck/shoulder/wing area on Friday. i was pretty miserable most of the day. Yesterday i felt pretty good, but today i am in pain again. i don't know if i repinched the same nerve or just felt so good yesterday that i overworked the area and now am paying for it again. What does one do to ease the pain of a painfully pinched nerve? How does one unpinch nerves? Is this the way my life is going to be, one ache or pain after another as i continue to age? If so, it is not much of a testament to living long. (This acts as a counterpoint to the first part of this entry.) My emotional state is good, my physical state borders on sucky.
While talking to Sarah last night she mentioned her group session. The topic for Friday was relationships and how each member felt hers had changed in the past year. Sarah has been going to group for about 6 months now, and she told me she has noticed changes in herself. She gets out on her own more, her counseling session, group, and the weekly dances; she and her grandmother have a more copacetic relationship, and i have noticed she feels better about herself. For these things i am grateful. She has met more people her own age, i only wish she could develop a closer relationship to one or two, so that she could have a friend with whom to do things. i will not give up hope on that score. i would like to think she is being more choosey about who she befriends, rather than rushing into something that may not be in her best interests. More likely, though, it is her situation. Her need to rely on others to get anywhere to do anything and her finances probably play as big a role in that respect. i do see her blossoming and that also makes me grateful. My one hope is that she and her brother can have the same kind of relationship i have with my sister and brother. i know Sarah and Pat love each other, and are there for each other in any time of need, but they are not very close. They aren't very good friends. i hope with maturity that will come.
Today is yarn store day. i'm tired of looking at the same old colors. i have two half pairs of stockings, and no desire to finish either pair. i want different. So, today i'm going on a yarn finding mission. i want to find a pretty fingering weight in a new color for a pair i have been trying to make in sportweight. The sock doesn't look good in the larger yarn. Maybe i'll look for some yarn for a 3 hr sweater i found a pattern for, if i can find the pattern again. Should have book marked that page, darn it.
Also on my to-do list: deep condition my hair, in preparation for the grey removal this afternoon. Stop by the market for a few more items for recipes i want to make ahead and freeze. Work on retyping the journal articles for next semester, which involves trimming my fingernails. They are too long for comfortable typing on the laptop. Water the plants, run the dog, give him some lovin', continue to fuss over whether or not to go to Corfu. The layover in Athens is a stumbling block. It is almost 12 hrs., and while i find airports fascinating places to people watch, i have become suspect a few times because of terrorist fears. Airport security have asked me several times what i am doing because i stay in one place for long periods of time. i am considering getting a day room at the airport hotel in Athens. Olympic Air doesn't provide. And i am waiting to hear about another accommodation in Corfu. It seems that i am doing all the things that will sweep me into a Greek island vacation, without ever actually making the specific decision to do so. An "let me see what happens if i do this" sort of thing.
i went into work yesterday to collate the materials for the research course. i have always kept a hard copy of individual assignments and a file of them on the office computer, but i have never put everything together in one packet. i found a couple of lessons and exercises missing, and a few things i want to revise/redo next semester, but on the whole i am even more pleased with the course seeing it all together in one place. i think i have even convinced myself to be open to any suggested additions or changes K may want to make. i did not print out the quizzes, i didn't want to leave them out on my desk as a temptation to anyone who might drop in, but i did include in an appendix of sorts extra exercises of the reading skills and writing skills type, along with the grading rubrics. i am fairly certain she is going to want more explicit grammar teaching and, at the very least, a midsemester exam. i have not quite decided how i will adress the grammar should it come up. If she wants to come up with a midsemester test, she can go for it. i would help, but i don't see a need, the quizzes, in my mind are a much more immediate indicator of where the students do or don't need assistance. It seems that the more i anticipate where she might perceive flaws, the easier it will be for me to address them. This is not a cop out, but considering i have put this course together single handedly, and in only 4 semesters, i see it as a solid piece of curricula. As always, a second set of eyes can point out improvements to almost anything, but i don't think i will feel the need to go on the defensive with her, as others seem to think will be the case.
i pinched a nerve in my neck/shoulder/wing area on Friday. i was pretty miserable most of the day. Yesterday i felt pretty good, but today i am in pain again. i don't know if i repinched the same nerve or just felt so good yesterday that i overworked the area and now am paying for it again. What does one do to ease the pain of a painfully pinched nerve? How does one unpinch nerves? Is this the way my life is going to be, one ache or pain after another as i continue to age? If so, it is not much of a testament to living long. (This acts as a counterpoint to the first part of this entry.) My emotional state is good, my physical state borders on sucky.
While talking to Sarah last night she mentioned her group session. The topic for Friday was relationships and how each member felt hers had changed in the past year. Sarah has been going to group for about 6 months now, and she told me she has noticed changes in herself. She gets out on her own more, her counseling session, group, and the weekly dances; she and her grandmother have a more copacetic relationship, and i have noticed she feels better about herself. For these things i am grateful. She has met more people her own age, i only wish she could develop a closer relationship to one or two, so that she could have a friend with whom to do things. i will not give up hope on that score. i would like to think she is being more choosey about who she befriends, rather than rushing into something that may not be in her best interests. More likely, though, it is her situation. Her need to rely on others to get anywhere to do anything and her finances probably play as big a role in that respect. i do see her blossoming and that also makes me grateful. My one hope is that she and her brother can have the same kind of relationship i have with my sister and brother. i know Sarah and Pat love each other, and are there for each other in any time of need, but they are not very close. They aren't very good friends. i hope with maturity that will come.
Today is yarn store day. i'm tired of looking at the same old colors. i have two half pairs of stockings, and no desire to finish either pair. i want different. So, today i'm going on a yarn finding mission. i want to find a pretty fingering weight in a new color for a pair i have been trying to make in sportweight. The sock doesn't look good in the larger yarn. Maybe i'll look for some yarn for a 3 hr sweater i found a pattern for, if i can find the pattern again. Should have book marked that page, darn it.
Also on my to-do list: deep condition my hair, in preparation for the grey removal this afternoon. Stop by the market for a few more items for recipes i want to make ahead and freeze. Work on retyping the journal articles for next semester, which involves trimming my fingernails. They are too long for comfortable typing on the laptop. Water the plants, run the dog, give him some lovin', continue to fuss over whether or not to go to Corfu. The layover in Athens is a stumbling block. It is almost 12 hrs., and while i find airports fascinating places to people watch, i have become suspect a few times because of terrorist fears. Airport security have asked me several times what i am doing because i stay in one place for long periods of time. i am considering getting a day room at the airport hotel in Athens. Olympic Air doesn't provide. And i am waiting to hear about another accommodation in Corfu. It seems that i am doing all the things that will sweep me into a Greek island vacation, without ever actually making the specific decision to do so. An "let me see what happens if i do this" sort of thing.
