What's Up With This?

I thought that last week's cold was on the retreat. But now, my throat hurts like crazy, and I don't know how I'll sleep with the pain unless I put some kind of sorbet ice pack at the back of my throat. Bugger.

Down the Rabbit Hole

Why is it, that when I'm working on my dissertation, I suddenly feel the need do something like look up information on the narrator for Mythbusters?

Carnival

Okay, so I know that this is a lame excuse for a blog post, especially after five weeks of silence, but can I tell you how excited I was this morning when I realized that "The Cask of Amontillado"* was on my syllabus for today?! For Carnival?! I love when that kind of stuff happens.

*a.k.a. to Ink's students as "The Flask of Armadillo."

The Weight of Comp

So, as I briefly mentioned in a previous post, this is the first semester of my teaching career in which I have not taught composition (by which I mean a class focused on argument that includes the research paper). It's a fluke of scheduling and loading and will, likely, never happen again.

But I have noticed something. Everything about teaching feels so much lighter. Which leads me to a question: Does teaching comp have to feel so heavy? Does it have to feel like such a slog for me and the students?

Granted, we are dealing with some pretty heavy-duty skillz, and since I'm at a CC, many students aren't prepared. But, still. Does it have to be so, well, hard? And it's not just a matter of grading quantity. My Intro to Lit students write a lot, and the sections have higher enrollment. But the grading experience in Intro to Lit is definitely different--it does make my brain hurt so much, and it's not nearly as depressing.

I know some people who teach comp and argument through literature. Typically, I have rejected that approach since I think teaching students to argue various issue-related topics better prepares them for what they'll need throughout their lives as academics, professionals, and citizens.

But maybe I'm wrong about that. Maybe teaching a lit-based comp/argument class would teach them the skills just as well. And would it be less weighty for teacher and students alike?

I love the feeling of this semester, and I'd be so happy to find a way to carry it through, back to Compland. Please weigh in* on this issue. Tell me how to be free.

*Do you like my mixed and unstable metaphors?

Back in the Swing

So I've been home for a week, trying to overcome jet-lag. I feel like I've been hit with the sleepy stick. Tuesday night, I was so painfully tired that it took everything I had to stay awake long enough to get kids in bed. I managed to get myself bed with lights out by 9:15 (I'm usually an 11:00pm kind of gal). Woke up the next morning at 7:30 still tired. But today I feel a little bit more normal. Hoorah.

Also started classes this past week, so that was a bit of a shock to the system, three days after returning from my lovely trip. But classes are good, and I am having a strange experience this semester. For the first time in my life, I do not have a comp class. I know. Weird, right? Makes things feel so light and care-free! I don't have to drag a bunch of unwilling students into the land of the RESEARCH PAPER.

The highlight of the week was a visit from Cousin Louise, otherwise known as The Thirty-Something Bride. We had time to wine-taste a little, eat good food, chat, hang out with family, and spend some time at a shop that had all kinds of vintage goodies for T30SB's DIY lovelies. Mostly, it was just great to spend time together.

Now, it's time to get my head back into the teaching world! And the student learning outcomes world! Oh, for the days of afternoon tea and research . . .

GEW at the BL

So here is what I just saw:

The only extant manuscript of Beowulf
A manuscript of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight
A manuscript of The Canterbury Tales (1410)
A King James Bible, 1611
A first edition of Robinson Crusoe
The only manuscript draft (excerpt) of one of Jane Austen's novels
A handwritten manuscript of Finnegan's Wake
And so much more that I can't even remember it all.

It's all in a fantastic exhibition at the British Library.

Not a bad way to end the trip. Tomorrow morning, I'm homeward bound!

It must be the wine, or cheese, or olives, or missing the children, or Joey, or . . .

I'm in my hotel room, my second-to-last night in the UK, eating goodies from my favorite food place in the whole world, watching the episode of Friends when Joey tells Rachel he's in love with her.

For many reasons, I'm crying just a little bit.