Monday, January 25, 2010

Manic Monday

Just when your day feels like it's going head first into the crapper, a few brilliant students show up.

Today did not begin well. We had sort of a lazy weekend, mostly at home, but we are in the middle of house-buying and that decision is totally freaking me out. I'm the worst decision maker you'll ever meet, so I'm scared to death to pull the trigger. What if it's the wrong house? Wrong neighborhood? The schools turn into Eastside High? (from Lean on Me) Our neighbors hate us (incidentally, one of the neighbors has turned out to be my current department chair!) That has been running through my head while I was running through the house trying to get ready and get the children ready; we were all sleepy because they wouldn't stay in bed last night, in part due to someone shooting off firecrackers, which make my daughter's teeth chatter, literally. Anyway, the house, plus potty training that isn't really going anywhere--did you know that a little boy can pee through the crack between the toilet seat and the bowl?--was churning into a hot cup of crap.

But I'm glad that I read the Our Daily Bread devotional this morning. It noted that the original list of deadly sins listed sadness because Christians are supposed to have a joyful heart. So I figured I should climb out of this emotional ditch before I left the house but it didn't really happen. I was laboring to avoid meltdowns all the way to the front door, and I didn't do it with grace and love, let me tell you.

The first class of the day was annoyingly quiet during the writing workshop, so I was concerned that the writers wouldn't get the help they needed. Of course, a digression into Lifetime's The Pregnancy Pact (which, apparently, is going to come up in every single class today) got things perked up pretty quickly. But then one of the bunches of students who have reappeared from the fall to ask for rec letters came to bring a thank you note. She drew pictures on it herself! It was all brightly colored and cheery. Man, did I need that! Then, I met with my majors and they were smart and on top of things. And they were clearly impressed with my insights into the novel. At one point I suggested an interesting connection and one of them said, "And that's why you have a PhD! That's so smart!" Yay for me!

So maybe I'm not just a loser who can't pull it together. Of course, the day is young . . . .

4 comments:

The Diva said...

What was the discussion on "The Pregnancy Pact"? I saw the movie; I thought it was interesting. And while it was explained in the movie, I just kept thinking throughout, why would any teenager want to have a kid? They are so much work and they don't go with hanging at the mall and football games.

Ink said...

1. You are SO not a loser. You are awesome.

2. Anything having to do with moving is insanely stressful. Hoping you find your dream house, on your dream lot, in your dream location.

3. Am so glad that you have nice students pointing out your awesomeness!

*Hugs*

The Steel Magnolia said...

Ink: Thank you for the endless validation. Sometimes I require a lot! When the house FINALLY happens, I'll be sure to blog about it!

TD: A recurring theme from many of my students is that teen pregnancy was a huge problem in their high schools, so they had to really be focused in order to make it to college. They largely had the same response that I did: The Pregnancy Pact girls must be the least informed, most simple-minded human beings on the planet. They are clueless about babies and the work they require, which, ironically, my students were well-informed about because of their high school peers. I think those girls in the movie totally thought babies go with football games, not to mention their total ignorance about childbirth. Geesh!

Anonymous said...

Mondays are supposed to be manic.

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