The power of caffeine...

This has been one of those crazy weeks. Grades were due this week, so I had big stacks of papers everywhere. I was grading as quickly as I could, but I have a hard time sitting and grading for long periods of time. I am happy to report that my life is my own once again. I feel so free! :)

I think one of the words for the week may be my favorite so far. The word dilettante is just brilliant. I've been muttering, "dilettante," all week as I see people doing silly things. It makes me smile on the inside...and sometimes on the outside. I think some people might be dilettantes when it comes to cognition, but that's okay. :) I've noticed (and I think I told you this on my last blog) that the more words I learn and the more I read, the more I see those words in what I read. It always makes me happy. This week I didn't really have much time to read. I was disappointed, but oh well.

I started to read a book called The Plot Against America. My friend Nick recommended it. I only read about 40 pages before I had to turn it back in. (See- I knew last week's break in tradition would lead to further disappointments...it was a bad sign). Anyway-the book is a novel written as if Lindberg had won the presidential election over FDR. I don't really know as much about history as I would like, so I need to chat with Nick and find out how much of the story is true and how much is the novel. I guess I just need Nick to corroborate some of Roth's quotes as actual quotes as compared to fictional quotes. I know Lindberg was never president, so as soon as he gets elected I should no longer be confused! But, alas, in the name of decorum, I had to turn the book back in today so another library patron could enjoy it.

I didn't really have any time to read Metamorphosis either, but I have noticed that, like many authors, Ovid seems to depend on the same tricks over and over. He likes turning people into some form of plant--trees, reeds, shrubbery, etc. The first time I thought it was a cool idea; the second time I thought he was just being lazy! Hopefully I'll be able to catch up on my reading this week while trying not to be so behind on my grading.

On a completely different note, this was a weird week in my classroom. It seemed like every time I turned around, some kid was asking for a band-aid. The other day, a kid came in with tape around her coagulated blood because the teacher wouldn't give her a band-aid. How sad? :) After couching my dismay in the form of a question, I offered to give her a real band-aid. She then told me a concise story about how she came to injure herself and her teacher's inability (due to lack of band-aids) to help her out. I think the increase in finger injuries might somehow correlate to the winter weather. Don't ask me how, but it seems to somehow be connected. So I guess you could say that my band-aids are quickly becoming a commodity.

On that note, I must leave you as my library computer time is coming to an end. Goodbye