It's springtime here. The windows are open, and stench of three cats and a dog has finally made way for the scent of fresh cut grass and Bradford Pears in our humble abode.
I finished grading my students' final papers and projects on Tuesday (except for one student who has an incomplete) and entered their grades before the deadline. I organized my teaching files--both electronically and in hard copy--and began making plans for summer teaching. I'm catching up on things that I've let slide for the past few months, and I'm trying to work on a couple of manuscripts and research projects.
And, naturally, I've gotten sick.
In times of high stress (during the semester for me), I think our immune systems shift into overdrive to help us stay healthy. And then, when that stress lessens, our immune systems also downshift, and suddenly we're overcome by sinus drainage, sore throats, hacking coughs, and aches and pains. Actually, my cold isn't all that bad ... it's mostly from the neck up: congestion, runny nose, sore throat. Technically, I should still be able to run at full capacity. But instead, I've skipped the gym for the past two mornings (foregoing my new triathlon training workout) and slept in. Today, I'm supposed to be working from home ... working on a manuscript. Right now, it's pretty crappy. Twenty pages of crapola.
I think I'll take a nap.
Getting physical
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Training sessions have been going really well these past few weeks. I
swim, lift, and run on my own (or with the masters swim team) during the
week, and o...
12 years ago
6 comments:
you are right katie spring has sprung. I know because the ants have arrived. yesterday someone must have deposited a piece of candy they didn"t like as they were walking by and put it in our mail box. the ants had a happy feast. they filled the mail box. the mailman got a big surprise when he reached in there and so did i. what is your manuscript about?
Eeek, sorry about the mailbox candy. When I was in high school, I took a walk with my swim coach down Morningside Drive, and we were eating rolls of raw cookie dough. When we'd had our fill, we casually placed our rolls in mailboxes and strolled on. I'm sure karma will come back and kick my ass some day.
My manuscript is about young adult literature with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) characters and content. I think I've been wanting to write about LGBT issues since middle school when I saw Fred Phelps and his cronies spouting hate as we drove through Topeka for swim meets.
My first manuscript on this topic will be published this summer in a national journal for young adult literature. I'm pretty excited about it. :)
I love the smell of Bradford pears. We don't have ants but I saw a spider today. I am sorry you are ill. When I was younger I got toncillitis every spring. Finally, a doctor told me I had allergies. Thanks to that, by spring my immune system had sprung. Forget running at full capacity. Get as much rest as you can. Nothing you write is crap. I am excited that your manuscript will be published. Fred Phelps makes me angry too. Hope you start to feel better.
i just listened to a program here on the pbs radio station about parents raising a boy who wanted to be a girl or insisted he was a girl from a very young age. they finally found a doctor who could help them. they gave have a drug that surpresses hormones until a certain age then give the hormones that will help bring on the gender that the person wants to be. it was very enlightening. I would like to ask phelps, "who does God love?"
Ants in the mailbox, that would be something to discover. I hate ants, but I hate ticks more. Why did God think the earth needed such icky bloodsuckers. I won't go mushroom hunting(or picking as I like to call it)anymore because of them. Once you find one on you then you just have this creepy feeling that there are more. You itch all over. Ticks are another sign of spring, but one I could do without. Katie I agree with Honor, you couldn't write crap and your body is telling you it needs to recoup and regenerate, so listen to your body and rest, actually it has probably given you a few hints over the past few months that you have chosen to ignore and now it is saying "enough is enough, rest already will you?" I am stunned that you would put uneaten cookie dough in someone's mailbox. I would open your mailbox very carefully. Your writing sounds interesting, keep us posted. What kind of grades did you give out?
Carol, gender identity/expression (transgender) is often left out of the discussion when it comes to LGBT issues, so I'm glad you've heard some good stuff on NPR. Most people simply assume that it's all about sexual orientation when in reality, people (including young people in our schools) are struggling to make their cognitive gender fit their biological gender. It's not something I ever considered as a middle school teacher, so I was probably guilty of making or ignoring remarks about gender expression (i.e. "act like" a boy or girl). I don't want my students to make the same mistakes.
Margaret, my students actually did pretty well this semester. Yay!
Honor, thanks for the kind words. :)
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