Today is the last day of class. Summer session, aside from the hectic pace, is so much more enjoyable than the regular semesters. I think I have learned a few things from the past two spring semesters' cheating episodes, also. This was mostly a good section of class. There are always more "incompletes" in the summer, but that is preferable to minimal efforts, failures, disappearances, and plagiarizers.

I have one batch of essays, one discussion, and one round of journals to evaluate, then I can tally end of semester grades. I'm happy I stayed on top of it. Bob is starting his vacation, and we are headed to Samsonville, which means dial-up, so if I wasn't caught up that would be a disaster. The forecast is lots of rain, but he needs the time off, regardless. If we can't swim, we'll work on the house. That's how we spend most vacations anyway.

The garden is just beginning to produce.

The Chronicle of Higher Education asked five faculty members at various colleges what is on their summer reading list. (Unfortunately, the online article is only available to subscribers.) Three of the five listed, among other thing, the latest Harry Potter book. The Chronicle also runs a list of what is being read on college campuses (based on campus bookstore sales) and Harry Potter is there, too. I wonder what it is about those of us who always feel somewhat outside of the "mainstream?" Not that college faculty or people who shop at campus bookstores are the mainstream, probably they aren't. So I guess what I am wondering is, what is it about some of us who feel outside of both the mainstream and the non-mainstream? I don't mean in some weird, fringe kind of way - hey, my life is pretty mainstream in many ways, maybe most ways - but in embracing, appreciating, understanding certain elements of popular culture, like Harry Potter mania (or, even more absurd, reality show obsession), or being surgically attached to cell phones. I don't know. Maybe it's me.