I've mentioned before that September isn't my favorite month. It should be, because my birthday is in the middle of it, and it is a beautiful month weather-wise. Plus, there are a lot of other happy events in September. But for some reason, I've experienced a lot of bad things in September, and as a result, my birthday makes me apprehensive. It isn't aging. That's a minor concern.

There was a time when I could list off a bunch of reasons why September has been terrible, but over they years the minor irritations have been outnumbered by, and pale in comparison to, the really, really bad things that have happened. Then there are the good things in the month that have now changed to melancholy memories, including Mimmie's birthday, Aunt Jean's birthday, Rudy's birthday.

So I won't bother with the mundane and trivial September annoyances. And this isn't a comprehensive list, just some random thoughts. In 1982 a friend, Don, died the day before my birthday. Well, that's true to a point, but it wasn't an accident or an illness; he committed suicide. It took about five years for that to sink in and make any kind of sense. Now five years have passed since "the" 9/11. I still clearly remember that day; I suppose almost everyone does. At the time I was commuting to work and sometimes I worked from home. I was at home that day and still asleep when the planes hit. My mother called me after the second plane and said "terrorists have attacked New York City." I tried to get more information from her, but she said, "turn on your TV" and hung up.

I never watch daytime television, but I did turn it on, sat down on my coffee table directly in front of the TV and stayed there for hours, watching in shock. I think the TV was on CBS, and I didn't channel surf. I don't remember going downstairs to make coffee, go to the bathroom or let the dogs out. I know I did, but I came right back upstairs and sat down - again on the coffee table. I didn't move to a chair or couch for hours. I mention that because I never sit on the coffee table, we don't use it that way. Bob was in DC and I was unable to get though to him on the phone. He eventually called, much later in the day. It took him several days to get home because he couldn't find transportation back. I also remember my mother-in-law calling at some point that day to say that someone we knew who worked high up in one of the towers was missing. I thought at the time that of course he would be fine. That wound up not being true.

A week later was my 40th birthday. We went to Villa Valente for dinner and the place was like a morgue. It wasn't busy at all (usually it is packed, regardless of the day of the week) and everyone who was there was talking in whispers. Later, I asked my parents how long it would take to feel normal again?

I didn't have this ejournal at the time (I started it in March 2002) but I was writing in a notebook, and I did write something; true to form, it was a tribute to Sirius, the only dog to die in the WTC. It is posted here and I still get quite a few hits from the Port Authority Memorial Site.

Yesterday, I was thinking of another dog. My Howie. He died eleven years ago, September 10, 1995. He was 15. He died between 8 and 9 pm and that year it was a Sunday, just like in 2006. Murder, She Wrote was on television. Funny the things you remember. Here is the tribute I wrote about him, and there is a picture of Howie (and Penny, "his" poodle) there. He was Howzerdo, if you are wondering.

Next Sunday, Rudy would have been eleven years old. Rudy's birth date - at least the month and day - were the same as Don's death date. The following Monday, it will be a year since Mr. Wuj has been gone. I miss him terribly. In his honor, I have a tribute written to post on the main website. It will be my first update to the main GBP site in a long time.

And now for something unrelated and trite...tomorrow is primary day and the phone has been ringing nonstop with recorded pitches!!

Three posts in one day, I'm on a roll. This must be the year of the automated political phone call. Is that really effective, I wonder? I get them every day, they fill the answering machine when I am not here. At first I listened patiently, because somehow it seemed rude to hang up on Andrew Cuomo even if it was only a recording of his voice! But now I slam the phone down immediately. My lunch was interrupted just now by some guy running for the Assembly - I didn't wait long enough to have the name sink in. Primary day is Tuesday, I'll bet the phone will be ringing off the hook.

I got us tickets to see the Producers at Proctor's on December 8. The tickets went on sale today, and the best choices were either Row R of the Orchestra Center Right, or the front/right of the balcony. So I went with the balcony.

Thank you, John Sweeney! This makes my day, and Ma's too.

Update: Sigh. The Capital District speaks. Between the snark at this site, and the arrogant commenters applauding the snark here, it's no wonder animal advocates have to fight so hard and the victories are so sweet.

On another subject, my classes are awesome so far! Very interactive without too much prompting from me. I'm hoping it keeps up for the entire semester, it will be a pleasure. My Thursday night class is in the Humanities building, in a room with theatre style seating and a stage! It isn't huge - holds maybe 40-50 students (my class is 32). It was a little intimidating at first, but there are interesting and fun possibilities with such a room design.

I remembered something from the book My Freshman Year (written about in this post; Sya responds here) as I was standing in line at the campus coffee shop. The author mentions that there must be a common understanding among young students of what type of backpack is preferred; she didn't know how this was communicated, because clearly all had not purchased them in the same store. She bought one at a big box (her first mistake, in my opinion) and she noticed once she arrived on campus that almost all other students had backpacks that were smaller, with less pockets and zippers, they were Jansport brand, and made out of a different material than hers. So yesterday, I decided to take note. It took my mind off the culture shock I feel when I am in the cafeteria at the beginning of the semester (I am just not used to seeing so many people; the crowds and organized chaos take some time to feel normal). Backpacks are definitely smaller and made from a different material than in "my" day, and Jansport is a popular brand (but there were others, mostly athletic brands such as Puma). However, I saw an equal number of students with briefcase type bags (probably containing a notebook computer?), quite a few women who had large fabric over the shoulder "satchels," and a sprinkling of granola-ish students with tattered canvas bags.

Thursday Threesome: How High is Up?

Onesome: How-- many Apples in your orchard? Didn't we just ask this one? Are you a Mac-o-phile, a Windows user, or one of those penguin people (Linux users)?

I use Windows. I hate Microsoft, but I've always used an IBM compatible computer - currently I have two IBMs (one with XP, one with 98) and one HP (with ME). I also have a retired Thinkpad with OS/2 and 3.1! At work I have a Dell with XP. The majority of people I deal with use Windows.

Twosome: High is-- what in height for your family? Are you a tall group? ...a short stack? ...or a mixed lot?

Bob is tall - 6'2", but his brother is quite a bit taller. On my side, we are average to short. My father is the tallest at 5'10", and I am the shortest (5'4"), though I have a nephew who I think is somewhat taller than my father, and niece who is a lot shorter than me.

Threesome: Up-- ...and down and all around: Labor Day marked the end of Summer for those of us in the US (regardless of how the plants felt what with the temperatures out West and hurricanes in the East). How about you: what signals the change of seasons this time of year for you?

Closing the pool, returning to campus, a leaf turning color here and there.

Yesterday's classes went well. I have a good feeling, especially, about the evening class. With all the anxiety over the start of the semester, I almost forget the many things that are great about teaching. Every semester is a chance to start fresh. It is so new, and full of promise. Then there is the campus environment. (I could do without the crowds in the cafeteria, though. Quite a culture shock after spending four months in solitude.) And students! I really do like (almost all) students, and I love teaching.

Looking over the rosters, there are 3-5 students in every class that have taken a class with me in the past. I always feel good knowing that some students like my classes enough to sign up for another one with me. This is especially true after getting the results of the course evaluations from last semester. They agreed with my own perceptions. The day class and online class were very satisfied, the toleration class and evening class less so. That description is a little overly sensitive on my part; the majority of students in all classes were satisfied, it's just that in toleration, and especially in the evening class, there were a few students who were not impressed (and clearly one student in the evening class who hated it. I'm sure it was this student).

I didn't "score" a smart room for either class. That's a first, and it will be a hassle. Not sure why that happened this semester, usually I get a smart room for at least one class. I'm going to have to order a portable computer and desktop projector for about half the classes. The one bonus is that both are in rooms that are very close to my office, so no schlepping across campus. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that toleration is in a smart room, because I need a computer almost every week for that class.

The pool is closed. It would be sad, if it wasn't so cold already.

I'm back on campus. Now that I am here, I am liking it again. It isn't quite as hectic as the first day of the semester is usually.

Just in time to begin the semester, today I finished reading My Freshman Year: What a Professor Learned by Becoming a Student. I learned about the book from this post. She asks "how would you feel if that older woman in your classes turned out to be an anthropology professor, studying you...?" I'm not sure. Now, of course, I would like to say that I wouldn't have minded, or that I would have felt it was pretty cool. I don't share a lot of the attitudes of many commenters at the site towards the so-called soft sciences. I think social science methods and studies are valuable, and I find the idea of returning to freshman year through the lens of anthropology fascinating. But to be honest, as an undergraduate, I might have felt violated by the professor, if I had thought she was a friend or classmate rather than a researcher. An area of concern in the comments was about the ethics of the research. I couldn't tell from the article in the New York Times whether she had followed appropriate protocols. There is an entire chapter in the book devoted to the subject, and she did follow the university's guidelines, and get approval for her study (which must have been tricky).

The book reminded me a bit of Nickel and Dimed, in that both authors immerse themselves in unfamiliar situations. In the case of Nickel and Dimed, however, the author admits that she never before in her life had to work at the low level jobs she tries out for the study. So that is one reason why some of her observations seemed to be in the "duh" category to me. In My Freshman Year, the main thing that frustrated me was that the author never shares anything about her own past experiences as an undergraduate (I mean the real ones, from when she was 18). She writes as if the study was actually her first time as a freshman, and her only college experience is as a professor. I found myself wondering why the cramped nature of the dorms surprised her. She comments that most professors have no idea what students go through in terms of housing, or meal plans, or juggling schedules. That may be true, and certainly times have changed. But haven't all professors been undergraduates at one time? And probably very few were commuters or attended a community college. I certainly remember freshman year orientation week and living on campus, and it happened 28 years ago. Is it because she, and perhaps most other faculty, have attended small, elite, private institutions that were very different from a big public university? Then again, aren't dorm rooms too small there too?

Some of her remarks are about things that I have noticed, and wondered about. Students rarely volunteer to speak in class, and when they do, it is about housekeeping (how long should the paper be? How many sources do we need?). Other types of comments earn disapproving glares from their peers. Doing the reading is not a high priority. Most students have part-time jobs in addition to a full-time college schedule and that cuts into time for both academic pursuits, and for social activities. Students don't seem to sit around talking about the interesting things they are learning. Clubs, activities and volunteer work are selected as resume enhancers. Technology has replaced some forms of socializing. Kids of the same race, ethnicity, religion, even gender sit together in the cafeteria; mixed tables are rare. She has written a lot of interesting things about these topics, and the reasons for them, but the book is rather brief, and I would have liked to read even more.

Anyway, I liked the book enough that I have added it to the list for the book analysis in one of my classes. I'm eager to hear what students have to say, assuming any choose it this semester.

Labor Day weekend forecast is for rain, aside from (maybe) Monday. Last weekend was rainy too, and fall temperatures are already in the air, so it looks like we will be closing the pool. That's the earliest ever, but we probably pushed it in the past and then the water was freezing. I have started to investigate pool heaters, but that would be for next season. I think we may be able to extend swimming for a month on either end of the summer with a heater.

As I browse websites for pool heaters, I can't resist looking at the hot tubs and spas. There is an area of the yard in C'ton that is full of weeds because of last year's foundation work, and we haven't done anything with it yet. We dream of a deck there, complete with an outdoor hot tub. It would take the sting out of closing the pool. We'll see.

So aside from the weekend (which will be in S'ville) this is my last day at home before the semester starts. I hate to admit that I am not looking forward to it. It's only two days per week on campus, but still. The agorophobia set in a long time ago. I haven't been on campus since May 8! And, my owl tendencies - sleeping in and staying up late have taken over, too. Oh, I know once I am back into the schedule it will be fine. Good for me, in fact. But even though I love fall as a season (and the fireplace beckons, that is a comfort), the end of summer, of the garden, of swimming, of the flowers, the return to the grind of school...always make me a little blue. And September is always a challenging month for me.

Thursday Threesome: Fluffy Bunny Rabbits

Onesome: Fluffy-- is as fluffy does! It's almost lemon meringue season at that pie shop. Do you do fluffy pies? ...or is it fruit all the way for you? (Okay, Southerners: go ahead and expound on rhubarb...)

I like ice cream pie, chocolate pie, peach pie, strawberry pie, and party cheese pie (that was Mimmie's specialty) but my favorite is apple pie. I make a mean apple pie, and with fall approaching, I'll be getting out the rolling pin.

Twosome: Bunny-- slippers? Yes? No? Barefoot? Shoes? What do you schlep around the house in when it's cold outside?

I wear my shoes at all times, unless I am sleeping. With my orthopedic problems, I have no choice. Before they became serious (a long time ago), I wore LL Bean Wicked Good Slippers in the winter.

Threesome: Rabbits-- Have you ever had little furry pets? What varieties? Are there any in your future?

My sister had a rabbit. He was a rescue, and quite mean! You had to wear gloves to handle him. I've always had pets; most have been our family dogs, but as a kid, I had a goat Heidi and a sheep Buffy (and fish, but they aren't furry), my mother had and still has horses, and as an adult I have had dogs (the dearly departed and still missed Howie, Penny and Rudy). Now I have two dogs and a cat. Sam and Edna are quite furry, but Sophie has hair issues. None of them are little, though; Edna is a big 14 pound cat (and that's not from being fat), and Sophie and Sam are 50 pound dogs. Yes, there will always be pets in my life, I can't imagine it any other way!

I finished my Fall syllabi and various other updates for classes. That's a relief. Next on the agenda is getting this house into better shape before my semester schedule starts next week.

Two things he conveniently omits in this article (I assume because they don't fit with his anti-goose theme): only a few of the geese at the airport are from Collins Park, and the airport staff reports that they have always had a lot of geese there, even before some came over from Collins Lake.

And, continuing on with the animal mistreatment theme, here is a story about what all too often is the outcome of the annual abuse fest which in a just world would be illegal.

Thursday Threesome: Name that Tune

Onesome: Name-- Ah, what about names? How did your blog name come to be? Is there a story there?

The Gully Brook is a little stream at the farm in Samsonville. It runs behind my house.

Twosome: that-- and this. We've all thought about a change of locations from time to time: is there any place you'd like to try living for a while? (You can go back home when you're done with the tryout .)

Not really. I have lived in Boiceville, West Shokan (both in the Town of Olive), Oneonta (in Otsego County), New York City, Brewster (in Putnam County), Waterford (when we first moved to the Capital Distict), and now in Castleton (in Rensselaer County) and Samsonville (in the Town of Olive in Ulster County); they are all in New York State, and with the exception of those months in New York City, they are all in upstate New York. I spent the first 17 years of my life in the Town of Olive, five years in Oneonta, about 18 months downstate, another ~18 months in Waterford, for the past 20 years I've been in Castleton, and for six years I've also had a house in Samsonville. I was born in (upstate) New York, I have (nearly) always lived here, someday I will be planted here, and that's the way I want it.

Threesome: Tune-- us into what you're listening to lately. ...anything on your radar we should be aware of?

I like music, and have a lot of CDs, but I really haven't been listening to much of anything lately. I mostly prefer silence. In the car, sometimes I listen to CDs...lately what comes to mind are Bare Naked Ladies, the Prarie Home Companion soundtrack, and Dolly Parton.

More great news! This time, for horses.

This Freeman article is a somewhat unfair report, but the good news is that the large parcel goes down in flames again! Hooray!

The phone just rang...it was an automated message from Andrew Cuomo about the primary for Attorney General.

This article in today's TU doesn't exactly show the university in the best light!

Had a lovely weekend, the weather was supposed to be rainy and overcast, but Friday night and Sunday were warm, and so I was able to swim. The pool is still hovering around 80 degrees. Precious last weeks of summer. Today I went with my niece who has taken a new job nearby, looking at neighborhoods and a house.

Last week I noticed that some of the cucumber vines were wilting. I feared the dreaded bacterial wilt, caused by the dreaded cucumber beetle. There is no good organic control. Cucumbers are one of my best garden crops, and they are just starting to produce. I searched desperately on the Internet for answers. Through observation, I determined that it isn't cucumber beetles after all, but squash bugs! Ugh. They are destructive, but luckily, unlike bacterial wilt, the damage can be controlled. So I became a predator. I sat in the tomatoes and cucumbers, silently stalking those horrible bugs. It will probably take me several days, but I think I can win this battle.

Too bad I cannot say the same thing for the flea infestation. I am now on round three of laundering everything, flea combing, bathing. Sophie alternates between tolerating it, and being vicious. Sam is terrified of the baths, and a bit too playful and wild for the combing. Edna is, as in everything, a good patient.

As I was watering the plants today, I noticed that someone ran over a squirrel right in front of the house. It is definitely dead (it is totally flat) but it is really bothering me. I think I should bury it. No doubt the culprit was not observing the village speed limit (so many drivers use this steep one-way street as a highway that I always get out of the way when I am on the passenger side of the car and I see a vehicle coming). Honestly, it's amazing I don't see more smashed animals in front of the house, considering the large number of squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits and groundhogs in the yard, and the speed demons who think 30 mph is just a suggestion.

Thursday Threesome: Free Amazon Prime

Onesome: Free-- isn't always free! What "freebie" have you discovered over the years that really isn't?

I can't think of anything. In my experience, freebies usually aren't. Amazon Prime is "free" for me for the next three months, but then I will have to pay $79 per year to keep it. But I knew that when I signed up.

Twosome: Amazon-- It's been a bit since we've done our Amazon Survey: do you use Amazon? Good? Bad? Indifferent?

Funny, since the subject of yesterday's post was Amazon Prime. Yes, I use Amazon a lot and have for years. It's very convenient and I have never been disappointed. It's wonderful for sending gifts. I'm expecting my grocery order today, in fact.

Threesome: Prime--Time! Are there any shows you are looking forward to seeing in the Fall lineup on TV? (okay, football counts ).

I don't know what's in the fall lineup and it would be an understatement to say I also don't care.

Recently, I was offered free Amazon Prime for three months - so I signed up, and yesterday, after receiving a $10 email coupon, I placed my first grocery order. It was tough to find items where it is worthwile to have a dozen huge boxes to store...so I selected Poptarts, tea, and biscotti. There were some others that seem promising, but I couldn't remember how much they cost in the market, so I'll have to do some research to figure out what are the bargains before making a commitment.

Two posts in one day! My summer session grades are done, yippee!

Here are two pictures I took this weekend:



The day lily in S'ville



The hay is cut!

Thursday Threesome: Disc Golf Season

Onesome: Disc--overy channel madness: did you catch the Mythbusters show with the bit about the Mentos and Diet Coke (episode 57)? Have you tried it at home yet? What am I talking about? Psst: it's a fun project with the kids...

I don't have cable and have never heard of this before. And I'm not into cola, any type, at all.

Twosome: Golf-- Do you play? Do you watch? Do you care? Even the Opens? Just wondering...

No, no, no, no. Enough said.

Threesome: Season----ing salt? What spices do you routinely use when you're cooking up a little something for yourself? A little tarragon? Cinnamon? White pepper? What perks up a meal for you

I love spices, and I grow basil, oregano, parsley, chives, dill, and rosemary. Some years my mother and I grow garlic. I like other spices too, but garlic is my favorite, I use it in almost everything.

Back in Castleton since last night after a very busy few days in Samsonville. It is not as hot now, but last week was boiling - humid too - and yesterday was also very warm. The pool got a lot of use, Thursday's water temperature was 86! I don't think it ever got near that last summer. Went to my brother's birthday party on Thursday, friends from Buffalo visited for several days, went hiking and walking and site seeing, went to the casual mixer night for the high school class of '71 reunion on Friday, got in hay on Sunday, went for ice cream, visited with an endless stream of people and hosted many BBQs on our deck. The animals are tuckered out (and so are we). Now I am facing my grading deadline for the summer class...Thursday, 11:59 p.m. I should make it without a problem if I don't procrastinate much more. I am going to pick my first green beans from the garden this afternoon! Yum!

Thursday Threesome: Time to Fill

Onesome: Time-- wasters in your life... Just a brief jump onto your soapbox: What is the biggest bother you have in this department? I mean, something you can post without incurring familial or job related problems ...

Phone calls from telemarketers. They always come when I am doing something that should not be interrupted, such as cooking, or showering, or eating dinner, or gardening, or concentrating on work. So the pan gets burned, or I get water all over the floor, or the dogs try to get my plate, or I practically break my leg running to the house, or I lose my place. Whenever I remember to bring the phone with me (outside, or in the bathroom, or near the stove) it doesn't ring, but I always does otherwise. Must be Murphy's Law. I am on the Do Not Call Registry, and it has worked well, but charities and companies that you have done business with in the past can still call.

Twosome: to-- beat the heat! It seems like it's all sort of hot all over the Northern Hemisphere this Summer! What are you doing to handle the heat? ...and for those Down Under? Well, your turn may come in just a few months; do you have any plans for then?

When in Castleton, use the A/C. When in Samsonville, swim!

Threesome: Fill-- your cup with a cold something! What are you drinking this summer to keep cool? ...and if you're a tea drinker: is it "ice tea" or "iced tea"? Just curious...

Bottled water or Polar old-fashioned ginger ale. And I say "iced."

My class ends tomorrow, and I am off to S'ville this afternoon until Monday night. Lots of fun activities planned!

I was interrupted twice by the phone while I was eating dinner. The first was a recorded message from Tom Suozzi, asking for support in the primary. That's the third time I have been called. But I guess it was intended for Bob, since I can't vote in that primary.

The next call was from a fundraiser for the Shriners. He asked if I knew all the great things the Shriners do for handicapped children, and I said "no." So then he delivered the pitch. They are looking for donations so they can take kids to see the circus. I patiently listened, and when he got to asking me to contribute, I said, "I am against the circus and I would never pay for anyone to see it." Which is true, even as a kid I detested the circus. So he said, "would you be willing to donate a small amount, how about $10?" I thought, hello! Did you listen to what I said, or are you just reading off a list of responses when someone says no? But I replied, "the amount is not the issue. I think the circus is animal abuse." And then he hung up on me!

Ha. An amusing end to a story that is personal for me. (Did I mention I emailed the congressman's office the day after my failed attept to educate the campaign workers and let him know that the petitions would include a lot of bogus signatures? No? Well, I did.)

Something interesting that is mentioned in the linked post is that Long, who is Gillibrand's attorney, is considering challenging the challenge, to see if he can get some of the thrown off signatures reinstated, because of "the part of New York’s arcane Election Law that requires signers to write the town or city in which they live, NOT the hamlet or village."

When the two men asked me to sign the petition, I noticed that the column for town next to names of my neighbors was blank. They told me not to fill it in, acting like it was to save time; they would do if for me. I wasn't really comfortable with that, but since my signature was no good anyway, I didn't argue. And remember, there were those bloodthirsty mosquitos. Now I wonder...was it because they had been instructed to fill it in since people do it incorrectly (listing village instead of town), and that gets the names invalidated, or was it because they wrote in town names from the 20th district? (I'm generally not a suspicious type, so I'll go with the former.) Too bad that wasn't the reason the names were thrown out! And too bad they didn't spend some time learning more about which towns are in the district! Oh I forgot, Kirsten's local.

This sympathetic front page article in yesterday's Middletown Record really irritated me. Hey, I am more compassionate than a lot of people about those less fortunate, but this pair has been collecting disability (for back injuries! Yeah, right) for 14 years (starting when they were 50!), they have four grown kids, live in a subsidized apartment, collect food stamps, and get the Cadillac of insurace, Medicaid, and they are complaining because they haven't been to the movies since 1998? Why doesn't the Record focus on some people with real problems? As my brother said, why not ask the homeless guy who is living under a sheet of plywood whether he would like to watch TV all day in their comfy apartment? If I was the betting type (which I am not), I'd wager that this couple both worked under the table for many of those years, and collected disability in addition to their unrecorded earnings. Now they probably are too ill to do it any longer and so they somehow managed to get the ear of a journalist to complain.

My book came today! They changed the title slightly from the previous two editions I worked on, now it's called Education: Meeting America's Needs? It looks good overall.

Two posts in one day! I thought I would try this again.

Thursday Threesome

You Can't Always Get What You Want

Onesome: You can't always get what you want- Have you ever wanted something really badly and had it fall through, only to look back later and realize that things ended up better for it?

I had a hard time thinking of something! I must lead a charmed life. Either that, or I don't want very many things. But then it hit me; my story being published in Chicken Soup. I can't say that I wanted it badly - I didn't, until they accepted it, and then I couldn't wait to see it in print. But they blew me off without even a courtesy email. I was very upset. Later I didn't care as much because I am glad I didn't sell them all rights. I would never sell all rights to my work at this point. And now it was published by the Freeman, which I much prefer! So things wound up better all around.

While I was writing this, I realized that there was something else. It was the promotion at my job as an administrator in 1998. I didn't even get an interview, even though I had worked there almost a decade, was the best qualified candidate, and had done the job on an interim basis for no extra salary for a year! And I was asked to interview one of the candidates! Wow! I guess I don't lead a charmed life after all. But since that awful experience wound up shoving me out the door (with a near "F you" to my nemesis-boss who will remain anonymous) and into school full-time; two short years later I had the PhD in hand; eight years later I have published more than I could have imagined, and have six years experience as a faculty member under my belt...well, I guess you could say, yes, things ended up better for it that time too.

Twosome: But if you try sometimes- Is there anything you you've ever wanted so badly that you were willing to give up on other things while you tried to get/save up for the one big thing?

Sure, but it wasn't a material possession. I wanted to be published, so I gave up a lot of wasted TV watching time to pursue that goal. I wanted my education, so I gave up all sorts of things: literally years of social events, TV, pleasure reading, sleep, money...

Threesome: Well you just might find you get what you need- Most of us have been at spots in our lives where what we want and what we need are not always the same thing. Money's tight and that new toy you want isn't going to happen because you need to get the brakes on the car repaired or you need textbooks for school. What have you really, really wanted, but you had to give up because of practicality? And did you ever figure out how to have both the want and the need?

You know, I really can't think of anything. I just don't have a lot of interest in material things; I am able to get pretty much anything I want. And other things I want, say an achievement of some sort, I go after and don't give up. Sure, there are things that I have really wanted that didn't happen, but it wasn't in my control, and that's the way life is. For instance, I really wanted Rudy to live longer. I did everything I could - but it was not meant to be. "If love could have saved him, he would still be alive." Sniff.

Blogger seems to be cooperationg, at least so far, so here are the pictures I wanted to post:



Here's Sam, with Sophie on the stairs.



A better than usual one of Sam-Sam, who is so much cuter in person. (I mean, in canine.)



"The chair matches me perfectly, and don't I look lovely?"



Not bad for 14, with her pretty green eyes! But Edna isn't crazy about having her picture taken.



This doesn't change much from one year to the next - but we went with red geraniums this year with petunias and traditional vinca, rather than the fancy stuff that was a disappointment last year.




My garden, shortly after planting (it has grown a lot, I'll have to take some more shots of it).



Ever wonder what happens the next year, if you plant one of those bulbs from the supermarket Easter Lillies?

Opening day of the Saratoga Race Track. For the next month, all the media will be focused on that disgusting spectacle, pretending it is important, and everyone around will babble nonstop about going to the track. "When are you going to track? Have you gone to the track yet? Wha-??? You've got to be kidding. You don't like horse racing? Huh? Why?"

Ugh. Spare me.

I finally downloaded my recent pictures. I thought I was going to post some here...but blogger isn't cooperating. Oh well, maybe another time.

The weekend was quiet. We stayed in Castleton. The weather was rainy, and we had a vet appointment for the dogs that took about half of Saturday, so it was easier to not go to Samsonville. Friday night I washed every blanket, throw rug, linen and pet bed in the house, because I noticed a few fleas on the animals. We also gave both dogs baths, I flea combed Edna, and vacuumed the livingroom and kitchen. We never have a major flea infestation, I think because of the homemade diet, combined with beneficial nematode broadcasting in the yard. Rudy hadn't had them in years. In the Fall, Sam had fleas when we adopted him, and I eliminated them with about two months of diligent laundering, vacuuming, bathing, and combing. It is quite a task to beat them without chemicals, so I hope I am successful this time around, too, but I know I haven't won yet.

Good reports all around from the vet visit. Sophie was good about everything except inspecting her teeth, but Sam was terrified. He is such a baby, I have never seen a dog be so scared over the Friday night bath, or at the vet. He had to be muzzled for the blood test, since she had the vibe he might bite out of fear. Still, she thought he was good, smart, and nice-looking. And now we know he is healthy too, both dogs' blood test came back negative for heartworm, lyme and erlichia. That's a relief, since who knows how much negative impact Rudy's positive lyme, and treatment for that, had on him.

I know it's not nice to gloat, but HA HA HA HA HA!

I have taught the same course online since Spring 2000, during summer session since 2001, on campus during the evening since 2002 and daytime since 2003.

The class is half over, and I just sent out feedback to all students to give them a pat on the back - or a wake up call. Honestly, the round of emailing that usually follows the feedback can be frustrating. Do students think they can do nothing and get a good grade? Or even pass the course? I just yelled at my screen, "how about this for an idea? Put in some (censored) effort!"

Online learning is not everyone's cup of tea. Independent, self-directed learners prefer it, it makes life easier for those with difficult schedules or who live a distance from campus, and students who are shy about speaking in front of others often find their voice via electronic discussion. Discussion is always very good in the online class; on campus, the quality varies. A lot. On the other hand, students who like the immediacy of the classroom, the nuances of body language, the reminders, pointers and reassurances about assignments, miss the classroom.

In my experience, the range of students in the online version of the class is very wide. During summer session, the students tend to be very strong, for the most part. I speculate that students who attend classes in the summer are among the best students in the university - whether on campus or online. However, during both the academic year and in the summer (when I always get a few students who are taking the class solely because they failed something in their college career, and need something, anything, to graduate - they are always either extremely motivated because they have learned a hard lesson, or more often just plain awful because they simply want to be done) it is in the online class where I have found both the strongest, and the weakest students. The strongest students make my job very easy, they bring so much insight and energy to every topic. I wonder about the weak students, if perhaps they expected the class to be a piece of cake, for some reason do not drop it when the unpleasant reality sets in, and instead are not making much effort, or if they are just in over their heads with the online format - or if they are weak students in general, and are aiming for a D-.

One other drawback that I have found over the years is that plagiarism has been more common in the online section. It isn't completely absent on campus either, sadly. Whether cheating is something that has always existed to the degree I have encountered it, or if it has been facilitated by the Internet, or a lack of absolutes in terms of morality and ethics in modern society, or the focus on getting a piece of paper and a job rather than learning, or careless professors who do not check or let offending students get away with a light penalty, I do not know. But in the 15 or so times I have discovered plagiarized essays, 75% of them have been in the online class. There was one incident in the online class last semester, in fact. Perhaps the anonymous nature makes it more tempting, perhaps the stern nature of my remarks to the class in the opening lecture on campus are taken more seriously, perhaps being online so much with the seductive cheathouse.com and other such vendors just a few clicks away makes it easier?

I'll end with something positive. I have not detected any cheating during summer session this year (yet?).

Wow, it's hot! Swimming yesterday was wonderful.

I finally was able to mulch the garden and stake the tomato plants. I was quite a sight, wearing a filthy baseball cap to shield my face from the sun, long sweatpants to guard against mosquitos (which were pretty bad, but not as bad as they have been), and the 90 degree heat resulted in sweat running down from my scalp, down my face and into my eyes. But I got it done and it looks great. I had to use ribbon to tie the tomato plants because I couldn't find twine. Tonight we're off to Samsonville unless Bob is too exhausted for the drive. I'm hoping to get in a swim before bed!

We spent vacation last week in Samsonville, and I had my first real swim of the season. This weekend it is supposed to be very hot and humid, definitely pool weather.

Here's an article from today's Times Union on the unveiling of a historical marker about Grace Brown's murder.

Last night, we were watching The Producers on DVD (it was great!) when the dogs jumped up and started barking because someone was knocking on the door. It really startled me since we don't get many unannounced visitors in Castleton. It was two men canvassing for the Independence Party. I am an Independent, so I went outside to talk to them. They were collecting signatures for Kirsten Gillibrand to appear on the ballot for Congress. So I told them that the incumbent, John Sweeney is not my representative. A few years ago, we were redistricted, and now I live in Mike McNulty's district. They insisted I was wrong, Castleton is in the 20th district, not the 21st. I was rather shocked that her campaign wouldn't know that is incorrect. I was sure I was right, so I tried to explain about redistricting and that their list must be out of date, but they were very forceful.

It has been a nightmare outside here lately because of the mosquitos (so much so that I haven't even been able to mulch my vegetable garden), The Producers was on pause, I had a glass of wine waiting, the dogs were still barking, and I didn't feel like continuing the conversation (even though they were perfectly nice), so I signed the petition. They gave me some literature, and remarked, "I guess you must not like John Sweeney." I responded, "actually that's not true. I have great respect for him over one issue - animal welfare. He sponsored an anti-slaughter bill for horses that is very important to me." They were surprised, and said that Kirsten would call me to assure me that she also supports horses. So I said, "well, I can't promise my vote (which is a major understatement since I don't live in the 20th district, although I didn't bother to add that at this point), but I am not necessarily opposed to anyone trying to get on the ballot, this is a democracy after all," and they left with the petition and a bunch of mosquito bites for their troubles.

After the DVD was finished, I checked the website of Congress, and discovered that I was, in fact, correct - I live in the 21st district. They were the uninformed ones. So they wasted their time last night, not exactly a salve for all those mosquito bites (and they were foolishly wearing shorts, a big no-no in the evening in Castleton unless you are saturated with 'Off.' [Note: I prefer long pants over chemicals.] But somehow I doubt they had any Deet handy).

Today the deluge stopped, so I ventured out and took some photos of my flowers and garden. Maybe I will post a couple here eventually. All the rain didn't seem to hurt the plants. But the same can't be said for many places; the Oneonta area took a big hit, in the Capital District, Schenectady's stockade is under water, and although not on the same scale, our driveway in Samsonville got washed out again.

Tomorrow, we are off to Lenox, MA. This time, we'll see Prairie Home Companion at Tanglewood. No link, because Tanglewood doesn't seem to have a website. Strange. Anyway, it seemed so far off when Bob bought the tickets in January, and now it is here already.

Next week we'll be in Samsonville. My connection is dial-up there, so the swimming pool always wins out over the computer.

Update on the geese.

I thought with the start of summer, I'd be posting here more often - and considering the nonstop rain that prevents doing my favorite summer activity, working in the garden, this should be an alternative, but I really haven't been writing much. My summer session class started Monday. But so far, there isn't much work to do, so that's not it. Just don't have much to say, I guess.

Two posts on one day! I love historic stories. The Times Union has been doing a lot of them lately, since it is their anniversary.

I got the garden in yesterday, so now the only thing left is to plant zukes in Samsonville. It is supposed to rain today (so far it is just overcast) so my plan for the afternoon is reading Teacher Man, by Frank McCourt.

Last week, I got all the flowers planted in Castleton, and over the weekend, we opened the pool in Samsonville. Now all that's left is to plant the garden. I did the digging yesterday. I am itching to get the plants and seeds in today, and put up the fence, but it is kind of overcast, so I'm afraid I will be eaten alive by mosquitos. The forecast looks more clear for tomorrow, so I may resist the urge to brave the bugs and wait until then to finish the vegetables. I've got my summer session online class all ready, so what is there to do today? Clean the house. Ugh. But it would be productive.

Here's a story for anyone who wonders why I love beagles. Belle is one cool dog. I just know Wuj could have been this heroic, too.

I can finally say that I am done with the spring semester! Today I finished emailing students the breakdown of their grades, and a memo of my thoughts on the class. I don't know why it took me so long to get finished. Actually, I do. In my four classes, I had 119 students this spring. For some reason, there were more than usual that I felt the need to send more than the generic merge memo with grade details; I wanted to write some specific comments. That was kind of hard, and a few weeks distance was a good idea in terms of gaining perspective. Most of the remarks were complimentary, but I had one student that I really disliked. That's odd for me. I usually like all students, even the slackers and ones who cheat. But this student really rubbed me the wrong way. That smirking face in every class. The obnoxious, nearly insane comments in journal entries. The student had a major impact on the atmosphere of the class. Amazing that one person can have such an impact. I tried hard not to let it influence the grades I gave, but I had to address it in some way in the end of semester memo.

Finally it stopped raining and the weather is nice - time for pool opening and planting! (My summer class starts June 26.)

More on the geese. So he thinks Scotia's approach is refreshing? Does that refer to the planned killing, or the efforts of the volunteers?

Hey, I know...since all solutions are at best temporary, let's let the Geese have the lake. People can find somewhere else to swim.

Here's a more promising article in today's TU on the Scotia geese. Way to go, volunteers! The mayor comes off as an even bigger jerk than I originally thought - and that says a lot, because his jerkiness was already well established. So he's received letters from Kansas and other places across the country, but he believes it is solely a local issue? I guess he doesn't mind that this planned atrocity has made Scotia a nationwide joke - and a very unfunny one, at that. He doesn't mention Rensselaer County, but hailing from there, I am close enough to conduct business in his town (and have in the past) - rest assured, I will not spend one dime in that community.

Here is a website where you can sign a petition against the killing of, and get other information about the Canada Geese in Scotia.

Sam is 1.



Actually, we don't know his birthdate, but it is around now. I designated June 1 as the date. So yesterday, we sang "happy made up birthday to you, happy made up birthday to you" to him.

It is hard to get his picture. He sticks his nose in the camera and doesn't pose. It took me six times to get these two. I think he is not that photogenic, he is much, much cuter in person.

I have (almost) officially put AY 2005-06 to bed. I don't want to wish my life away, but I am not sorry to see this year over. Work-wise, it was good - with a few notable exceptions, my classes were great for the most part, but otherwise, not so much. The loss of Rudy looms large...eight months ago last week. Anyway, today I submitted my faculty activity report; the deadline is tomorrow. I've never gotten a raise based on it, but I think reflecting is still worth the effort.

I wrote "almost" because I still have to email all students in my Spring classes with a breakdown of their grades. An all-time low record this semester, only three students emailed me to ask why they got the final grade they did - one B+, one A-, and one E (failing). The failing guy didn't ask why, he wanted a second chance (which is impossible after the fact). I was surprised by the small number of emails, because in all except one class, the grades were somewhat lower than in past semesters; I gave quite a few more C final grades than usual. I guess they knew what they deserved? In addition to those three, two students who had Incompletes in prior semesters emailed me. I wonder why they wait so long to do anything?

Very, very hot here...40 degrees to 85 degrees in just a couple of days. But now I should have time for yardwork, hooray.

I submitted grades at 6:30 pm on Tuesday (the deadline was midnight). In all except one of the classes, the grades were significantly lower than in past semesters. I fully expected a ton of complaining emails as a result (the grades became available to students at noon yesterday), but only one student has contacted me so far. That has to be a record.

Yesterday was our anniversary, so we went to Lennox, MA. The weather was beautiful. On the way, we stopped at Prime Outlets in Lee, MA. Now, I hate shopping so this is really saying something - it was great! The deals are awesome, and the atomosphere is pleasant. Definitely worth the 40 mile trip from Castleton. We stayed at the Yankee Inn, in a room with a spa bathtub and fireplace (both were disappointing - the Duraflame log would hardly burn, and the jets in the tub were pathetic), but they also have an indoor pool and hottub, which nobody was using except us, and they were nice. We ate out (twice!), had to make a round trip back to Lee (because I left a bag from the Hanes store in J Crew), and then got up in the middle of the night and came home, so that the animals didn't have to be alone for too long. All in all, it was a really good time.

Still working away on evaluations (it always takes me longer than I predict) but something in the news has been bothering me. Why is it when a school budget fails - the administrators always blame apathy of the people who supported the budget - that they stayed home and that is why the budget failed. But when a budget passes, they don't say that people who didn't support the budget stayed home and that's why it passed. Now it is true that not enough people vote in school board and budget elections, but that is so, regardless of the outcome. It seems to me that when budgets fail, it is the district's administrators' and boards' fault, not the voters!

John Gray hits the nail on the head about the goose situation in Scotia.

I am busy with end of semester evaluations. My deadline is May 23 (midnight) and it will take every minute until then to finish!

So far, the powers that be in the Village of Scotia refuse to budge on their horrible plan.

My classes ended yesterday. For the day class, the students asked if we could go outside, and I said yes. It was a good class, and I thought they deserved to do what they wanted. The weather was beautiful. I have never held class outside before, and many students said they had never had a class outside, either. My classes often met outside when I was an undergraduate, but Oneonta was a more relaxed environment, and those were different times. I can't say I liked it as a student - it was distracting, my papers would flutter in the breeze, there was no way to write, and very often I wound up sitting in something and getting my pants dirty. But for the last class yesterday, it was OK.

I wrote to Assemblyman Tedisco (who isn't my representative, but it is in his district, and I know he likes animals since he sponsored the Buster Bill), PETA, and the mayor of Scotia about the planned killing of the Canada Geese in Collins Lake Park. I've heard from PETA, and they are aware of the situation. They said Goosepeace, a nonprofit group, offered to assist Scotia with non-lethal options, and they were rebuffed! I sure hope it can be stopped.

This is horrifying. I am so upset I don't know what to do. How can they consider the option of killing the Canada geese? So that they can go swimming this summer! If this happens, I wish tragedy on every person who uses that park, and every person involved in this atrocity. People are so mean to animals, it makes me sick.

Yay! Christmas Paper(s) is online.

We had a busy weekend, almost like being on vacation at home. Friends were visiting, so on Friday we had dinner at Lombardo's, our favorite Italian restaurant. Saturday, we had lunch on the patio at DeJohn's (the weather was gorgeous), and afterwards we checked out the Albany Aqua Ducks boat. It is a historic bus tour of downtown Albany, and then the vehicle drives down a ramp into the river! It was great! Definitely recommended. For dinner, we went to a venerable Albany landmark, Jack's, and then, because it was so crowded that a trip to the bathroom was difficult, we went to a nearby bar, Franklin Square, and stumbled across a 50th birthday party, complete with a musical show put on by drag queens. It was a riot! The guy who was celebrating his birthday even gave us some of his wonderful Vanilla Bean birthday cake. On Sunday, after our friends left, we went down to Hudson, where we had Chinese food at Spring Garden, and then saw United 93. That is a movie that is definitely worth going to see; it was very powerful.

I couldn't wait, so Wednesday night we drove down to Hudson, which is the closest place to Albany that the Freeman is sold. I got three copies of the paper. It came out good! Something funny, they didn't alter it or cut it at all, except they changed the title to "Christmas Papers." When I sold it to Chicken Soup for the Veteran's Soul, they made the same change. But they made a few other changes too, including adding junk such as "a big barrel-chested burly man" as a description of the major, or maybe it was the superior officer. That irritated me, although the change from singular to plural in the title didn't, and still doesn't. That much. The end of the Chicken Soup episode is that I got the rights back, because they cut seven stories at the last minute, including mine, to make room for celebrity-written stories. I'm glad now, because I'd rather it was published by the Freeman, and also because it would have been a mistake to sell all rights, as Chicken Soup requires.

My story is in the Freeman! I'm linking to the newspaper's website, but the story is in a special section, and it doesn't seem to be online. I haven't seen it yet, because I can't get the Freeman in Castleton, and after calling around to some newsstands I have determined that the closest place to get it is quite a drive. So I will have to wait until I go to Samsonville to see it.

I thought I had a PDF of the story, but I can't find it. So here it is:

Christmas Paper

Drafted into the army at eighteen during World War II, Dino had never been away from his brothers and sisters before. He did his basic training in Stark, Florida, a place as alien to a kid from Brooklyn as Mars. He was terribly homesick.

Thanksgiving came, but he did not get papers to go home. Impulsively, he went AWOL. For three days on the train ride north he hid in the bathrooms from the MPs. When he arrived in New York, his brother Joe and brother in law Richie were horrified and urged him to return to Florida. But he was stubborn, and instead, he spent the holiday with his family and then resumed hiding in bathrooms on the long train ride south.

When he slipped back on base, his friend, a gentle guy from Newburgh, New York told him he was in big trouble. At roll call the next morning, his superior yelled at him for his absence and told him that he was fortunate he'd returned. If he had been gone just a bit longer, he'd have been considered a deserter and when caught, would have gone to prison. Out on bivouac later that day, the major pulled up in a Jeep and called Dino over. He had his file on a clipboard and as he flipped through the papers, he sternly asked Dino how he had avoided being caught by the MPs. "I hid in the bathroom on the train, sir," Dino replied. Then he was asked why he'd gone AWOL. He said he was homesick and had to see his family. The major studied the clipboard and said, "so you're an orphan?" "Yes, sir." "And you live with your older brother in Brooklyn?" "Yes, sir." "You realize this means you won't be getting papers to go home for Christmas?" "Yes, sir." Dino knew he was lucky to have drawn such a light punishment.

A few weeks passed and the young privates were assembled to receive their papers to go home for Christmas. Each name was called in alphabetical order by the sergeant and then the major handed the magic documents to the eager soldiers. Dino was doing O.K. even though he knew his name wouldn't be called. They got to the Gs. "Corrado Giuliano," hollered his superior officer. And with a smile the major handed Daddy his papers to go home.

**********

Yesterday, I showed excerpts of Country Boys in my classes. I have a "smart room" for my day class, and unfortunately the DVD player is in the PC. It is not very efficient to operate; to get back to scene selection I had to stop it, eject the DVD, and start over. So that took up a lot of time. Then, the day class is so interactive that I never get through as much material as I plan. I'm not complaining, that class is filled with bright lights and I will be sorry to see the semester end. But as a result of the clunky DVD and the interruptions, I still have about 25 minutes of scenes to show on Thursday. I can't wait to hear what they think of the film. There is only time to show about 1/4 of it, since the full program is over five hours long in its entirety, but it is still powerful, and I could tell from the way they reacted at certain points that the discussion is going to be good. In the night class, we watched the entire 85 minutes that I had selected. The room has a regular TV and DVD player, so it was a lot easier to manage all the scene skipping. The discussion went better than usual. You'd have to be totally disinterested to not have some thoughts on the program.

The officer called who was here on Thursday. He said they arrested a guy for DWI who said he has information about the car robberies. Also, it is a felony because it involved stealing credit cards and checkbooks. He said that we may never get our stuff back, but that they might be able the catch the crooks. So that is good. Bob is very pleased with the treatment we have gotten from the town police. You always hear how unprofessional local cops are, and that hasn't been the case at all. He plans to make a donation to them.

Yesterday morning before work Bob came inside and said that someone had stolen his briefcase from the car. I could hardly believe it, I figured he had put it somewhere in the house, but it turns out that the night before he forgot to lock the car, left his briefcase on the backseat, and it was obvious that someone had been in there, because they went through the glove compartment & left the contents on the front passenger's seat, also rifled through the pocket behind the driver's seat, moved his coat and messed up a blanket that we have protecting the backseat from dog hair. In addition to the briefcase, they stole 3 or 4 CDs that we had in the glove compartment (one was 1776 the musical).

So, the police came right away. I thought that it was probably some juvenile delinquent teenagers - the kids are on Easter break and they always get into trouble, but the cop said that there have been 50-60 car robberies in the past few weeks in Castleton and Schodack, and that there were 6 on our street - in fact, there were three on Green Avenue, including our car, the same night. So he said it is likely to be professional criminals, not some kids. Which of course is worse, because that means Bob has to be concerned about identity theft.

So yesterday after the police left, we spent almost all day calling banks, credit card companies, and the credit bureaus. Bob also had to go to two banks to close accounts and and open new ones. His major credit cards were in his wallet, which was in the house, but his checkbook, the Samsonville home equity checkbook, a joint checkbook that we rarely use, our savings account number & information, his social security card, his credit union ATM card (which has a Visa logo, the cop said that was the most likely thing to be used), and three store cards were in there. Also a pair of his eyeglasses, a photo CD of our nephew's graduation pictures, the voucher he got from Southwest airlines for being bumped, a souvenir and photo he bought in Florida, a bunch of paperwork (including his colonoscopy report) and my Margaret Atwood book were in there (between Atwood and the 1776 CD, these must be educated crooks)! There may be other things, but of course we will probably notice as we go along. The most expensive things were the briefcase (it was a leather LL Bean), the voucher for air miles, and the glasses. But our homeowner's deductible is $1000, so there is no point in putting in a claim.

Anyway, we took care of everything, so there shouldn't be a problem, but he will have to watch his credit report and statements for a while to be sure. Since there have been so many thefts, the police want video tapes from the banks in case they try to use the ATM visa, withdraw from the savings account, or forge the checks, so all of the accounts have teller alerts on them now. They took the contents of the glove compartment that were on the seat to see if they can get finger prints (it was mostly maps).

The cops checked the school and the fire department to see if maybe the briefcase had been thrown in the weeds or a dumpster after being emptied, and we checked the cemetery, but no luck. So I guess I will get him a new one for our anniversary. You'd think there would be something in the paper or on the news about this to warn people since there have been so many wouldn't you? But there hasn't been a word about it yet. Anyway, I was glad it wasn't me who forgot to lock the car (also that my pocketbook wasn't in there!).

I am shocked that the dogs didn't hear something. But then Sophie's main purpose in life is sleeping on the couch, and Sam is still such a baby that he doesn't spend time monitoring the street. I know for sure that if Mr. Wuj was alive, even when he was very sick at the end, he would have noticed, alerted us and scared off the creeps with his piercing wooooo.

I'm finally caught up with grading. Just in time for all the end of semester papers! I've been struggling this semester with one of my classes. They really don't seem at all engaged, no matter what I do. The goal seems to be to contribute as little as possible, so that I will end the class early. In past semesters, when this happened, I let it go and it just got worse. At that time I resolved to be more diligent in the future. So, this semester, I decided that "freedom" wasn't working - so maybe "structure" was needed. I have brought copies of multiple choice pop quizzes on the reading to class for the past few weeks, and I figured, if they aren't participating, I will spring a quiz on them. I haven't had to resort to doing it yet, because I also designed very structured exercises for them to complete, and I have made sure that every minute of time was taken up until the end of class - no opportunity for getting out early. It is working OK, but I can see they don't like the class any more now than they did before, when the atmosphere was more free. It isn't everyone in class, but the idea of a work culture group - where no one will work harder than peers - does seem true. Contrast that with another of my classes, who thrive under the freedom approach. I guess the engaged students have the same influence on their peers, just in the opposite direction.

Finished the taxes! The most annoying part this year is that NYS has added a new required form - you have to copy the information from your W-2 to it, and include that instead of the W-2. I'm sure the reason is to make the document scannable - but really, how irritating.

So that is how I wrapped up my Spring break. There are still some essays to grade, and maybe I will get to them on Monday.

Wonderful, funny column in the Chronicle. (Unfortunately, it is a subscription site).

Here's a story about a local farm. Something about this really resonates with me. I find the recent controversies surrounding this issue so upsetting. It is so sad to think of the risks that people to take to get here, and to stay here. What a debt we owe them. And to think many descendants, like me, grow such deep roots that we don't want to stray too far from where we were born. I feel so lucky. I say, let them come, and let them stay. Maybe someday their grandchildren will be as blessed as I am.

Bob is off to Florida for a few days and I am holding down the fort. I have accomplished a lot already. Spring break will be a heavy duty working break for me, but it feels good to catch up on so many details. I am feeling a little sad though, because last time Bob went south to visit his folks Rudy was here with me, and that's when I created his website "Howling Hound." I never imagined that he would not be here 14 months later. So in his and all the other shelter pets' honor, go orange on Monday, April 10 - the 140th anniversary of the ASPCA.

My classes are all so different this semester. In the Fall, they were all fairly good. This Spring, it is a different story. The day class is awesome, but one of the evening classes is especially troublesome. Actually, both of the night classes (kind of) are, but for very different reasons. Anyway, I have been thinking a lot today about what to do tomorrow evening. I think I may resort to a threat I put on the syllabus the last time I had a class that was this unengaged...a pop multiple choice test on the reading. I haven't had to take this drastic measure before. But we'll see.

I found out a couple of days ago that a favorite teacher of mine died last month. After hearing about it, I searched the web and found her obituary, but it is archived and I had to pay $1.25 to view it, so I can't link to it. I did find this tribute to her, though. I believe "pig" should be "pug;" one of the other things that the Google search turned up was a post she wrote on a dicussion board in 2003 about her dog.

Every semester, in my foundations class, I have the students discuss or write about the concept of mentors and role models, whether they have had one in school or college, and whether we should expect teachers to take on this responsibility, or if that is unfair. A lot of students remember some wonderful teacher and share a story about the impact that teacher had on them. Not as common, there are others who can't remember any teacher having such a significant role. But even the students who remember a great teacher will sometimes wonder about the large number of teachers they have encountered, and the fact that only a handful have been memorable in this way.

I wouldn't say this favorite teacher of mine was a role model, or even a mentor exactly. But I do remember that she was nice to everyone - including, and especially, the troubled students. She was a high school English teacher, and in my case, she really encouraged me to write. She always assigned a journal as an assignment in class; that has proved to be a valuable lifelong habit for me, and I require the students in my foundations class to keep one, too. Maybe I wouldn't be keeping this online journal if it wasn't for her. She wrote "keep writing!" in my high school yearbook. When I told her that I was going to go to Oneonta to college, she shared that Oneonta was her alma mater. She even wrote to me a few times when I was a freshman. Although I hadn't kept in touch with her in years, I think the world will be a little less bright with her gone.

I caught another student plagiarizing yesterday. He handed in an essay that another student wrote for class in Spring 2005. He added three sentences. I had changed the questions, so the essay no longer was appropriate for the assignment. Did he think I wouldn't notice? Really, it is insulting. I have already sent everything to Judicial Affairs. Buh-bye.

Sam was nearby as I was working on the essay nightmare (and hardly making any progress, as I spent so much time on this one case). I said to him, "this is only one reason why dogs are better than people." Sam wouldn't cheat if he was a person.

Which reminds me, today is the sixth month anniversary of Rudy's death. Still think of you every day, my sweetie.

This opinion piece, from yesterday's TU, captures the mood nicely, and is a good read.

I might be getting another story published!! It is looking good. The story is "Christmas Paper." Keep your fingers crossed.

Well, they didn't win...but they certainly played a great game. Also notable, I watched televised sports...a first!

Now, sports of any kind are VERY low on my list of priorities. Forget that - low on my list of interests, no way could sports be a priority! Actually - revise again, sports doesn't even make my list of interests. (For the curious, check out this post to see the roots of my anti-athletics disorder.) But the university's basketball team has won the America East Conference championship, and for the first time is headed to the NCCA tournament. They will be playing #1 UConn in Philadelphia tomorrow. How many times has a #16 beat a #1? Zero. (Before you are too impressed, I had to look up most of that information before I typed; although everyone, everywhere is chattering, and I have been listening to radio and TV and reading the paper, it was not retained, and so it was not off the top of my head.) Anyway, to say this is a big deal around here would be a major understatement. The campus is buzzing. But more than that - and this is truly incredible, because as a "State school" in the northeast, we don't exactly feel the love from our community - the entire region is excited. The idea of an upset victory really captures the imagination. It would be nice if people got this worked up about academics, but oh well! A couple of the players have been in my classes in the past, or are in one of them now. Better to not comment specifically, or even generally, on their performance, OK? Except for one young man, who was in my summer class last year. He's a great student, a really nice kid, he made a lasting good impression on me, and he deserves to win! So, just for him, I have generated some interest in this one game. Go Great Danes!

I haven't been posting here very much lately. If this was a paper journal, this is probably one of those points where I would abandon it for a while. I checked my referrer logs - and the #1 search terms for landing here are bungalow houses or craftsman houses. That is usually the case. But the #2? Rodents! Pretty funny.

We had a little snow this morning, which is only notable because we have had so little snow this winter. I was thinking as I looked into the yard that we didn't have a lot of snow this winter because Wuj wasn't here to roll in it. Sniff.

We saw Roseanne Cash at the The Egg on Friday. She is a real class act! The opening band was the Greencards. They were great, too.

Blogger seems to be acting up?

Back in December, this appeared in the Ms. Mentor section of The Chronicle (sorry, it requires a subscription). Basically, one faculty member wrote in for advice about something petty; the instructor who preceded him or her (can't remember) in the classroom never erased the chalkboard, in spite of being left a note on the board asking that he do so, having the annoyance mentioned by a mutual colleague, and being emailed about it. Now, I was surprised by the letter, because I have no clue who uses the classrooms before me (I guess Ms. Mentor's correspondent must teach at a very small place), and even if I did, I would never write notes or emails or gossip about the subject. But since then I have been thinking about it, and wondering if there is an unspoken etiquette about chalkboard erasing. I notice that most of the time, the chalkboards in the rooms I use are not erased - they are full of scribbles. This is even true in the smart room. I always erase whatever is there when I enter - and also never fail to erase anything I write on the board before I leave. It just seems the appropriate thing to do, yet others do not extend the same courtesy.

We visited Oneonta on Friday, something we do every year or so. It was a nice time, as always. But I was left with a melancholy feeling. Later, I tried to figure out why. Because I could have happily lived forever in that little city? Or is it the passing of time and aging? On campus, after the trip to the college store to pick up tee-shirts and other alumni paraphernalia, despite the bitter cold, we walked around a bit near the academic buildings, and went inside one that used to house a favorite coffee shop. It was sad to see that the coffee shop is gone, replaced by a vending room. All the chairs and tables were there, as well as the memories. In '70s orange. I scanned the faculty directory. The offices for mathematics, sociology, philosophy, anthropology, and education are located there. I only recognized one name in the list. We both noticed how friendly the staff and students were at the college union, such a contrast to here in Albany. Because it is a smaller campus? Because it is in Central New York? Because the focus in undergraduate education? We weren't sure why. Later, someone told us that the coffee shop we missed moved to a different building, and transformed into a Starbucks. Typical.

Downtown we visited a favorite bar and found it unchanged, the pizzeria where Bob worked (which has been extensively renovated), and a health food cafe. It was vegetarian when we were students, but now it serves meat. We bought a funky lantern at a small gift shop that sold used DVDs (Bob guessed they are like currency to cash-strapped students), tapestries, a huge selection of pot pipes, and incense. We ate at Brooks (yum!) and had dessert at at small cafe.

As we strolled along Main Street, we were saddened by the empty storefronts. Even when we were students, there was talk of the difficulties of owning a store there, of the threat from the east and west ends of town. But as it turned out, the suburban fringes didn't do that much harm. Students didn't have cars, the campus bus stopped near Main Street, it was tradition for folks to drive in from the outskirts to shop on Main Street, and the chains Ames to the west, and Barkers to the east both have gone out of business long ago.

The anchor of Main Street was Bresee's, a classy three-story department store that was founded in 1899. Little shops, restaurants and bars filled the rest of the street. In the basement of Bresee's was the "Health Bar," a wonderful coffee shop. I still remember two cookies were 15 cents, and a turkey sandwich on a roll was $3.00. Another sandwich choice was cream cheese on banana bread with canned peaches for that same low price. They were closed Sunday, open the other days until 5:10 and Thursdays until 8. We ate there nearly every day - twice on Thursdays - and our favorite waitress was Grace. The last time I saw Don was sitting in a booth at the Health Bar. Several of us had coffee and talked about Pink Floyd "The Wall."

In 1994 Bresee's went out of business; the Health Bar closed, as did many departments, but the store stayed open - it still operated under the Bresee's name, but sold only furniture and appliances. At least it was still there, in a way, the building maintained, a friendly presence. So I was shocked on Friday to see it vacant, and many of the surrounding stores out of business, as well. When we got back to Samsonville, I searched in Google, and learned that in late 2003 the building sold. The store stayed open, but they auctioned off much of the memorabilia that was stored inside - a lifetime of retail point-of-purchase. At Christmas time there were enormous snowflake lights that would adorn the storefront, and in the windows, a series of animatronic elves entertained passersby - all sent across the block. I wish I knew about that auction! I would have loved to go, and get something. There was a carousel horse that they sold - of course that would probably have been out of reach. But even a Health Bar menu would have been nice to have.

I could find no mention of the store going completely out of business since then, but the posters in the window said that the inventory and restaurant equipment had been auctioned off in January. There was no year, but we assumed it was 2006, since the poster was still intact. So perhaps I felt sad because Bresee's is gone?

There is no mystery as to why. Students bring cars to campus now; Oneonta has paved some formerly green spaces. Perhaps the newer generations, who inherited the buildings and stores on Main Street, are not interested in retailing. Then, people in general are willing to travel greater distances because of the allure of the malls - I'm sure lots of folks go to Binghamton or Albany to shop. Just have to have lots of selection and the latest plastic thing, you see. And it seems few people are loyal to old fashioned, small retailers. This is the philosophy: If it can be made in China, then bought for 5 cents cheaper at a big box store at midnight the day after Thanksgiving...stay outa my way on the highway, baby.

The east and west ends may have been no match for the venerable Bresee's, but Southside is booming. What was only a Howard Johnson's, a Holiday Inn and (ominously) a new, small mall (that struggled) when we were students, now has a variety of bland, awful chains: Home Depot, Hannaford, McDonald's, Taco Bell, WalMart. I didn't bother to look, but there probably are Target, Olive Garden, etc. too. You could be anywhere on this planet. It isn't special enough to be Oneonta. A flyer in the newspaper announced the grand opening of Lowe's. Samson Floors, where Bob bought paint and wallpaper, left Main Street - moved into the closed movie theatre building (because, of course, the mall has a cinema 1-50) and has since gone out of business there, too. If Samson Floors couldn't make it, how can Oneonta need both a Lowe's and a Home Depot?

I was thinking that I understand better something that eluded me when I was younger. When a senior citizen would say, "I'm glad I'm not young, because I don't like X and I don't want to see Y in the future," I would think, how ridiculous. Change is exciting, progress is good. The past may have been great, but the future will be too. Now I see all the big box chains that people fall all over themselves to support, the destroyed community that is left behind, and I see a part of contemporary culture that I don't like at all. I mourn for Bresee's, and Main Street. I even mourn the two small supermarkets adjacent to Main Street, on Chestnut Street, both now bankrupt. So now you would have no choice but to have a car, if you wanted to buy groceries. Southside is not residential, or pedestrian friendly.

A few small businesses have opened recently, to replace some of the grand stores that once graced the street. They are mostly small, exotic gift shops, and cafes. They seem to be low budget operations that cater to students; I hope they make it. Anyway, in searching, I found this blog with pictures of Bresee's, and this website, with pictures of Main Street.

On AOL today, I read this article about tips for successful online learning. Of these 10 tips, only #9 and #10 are useful, in my opinion. The others are OK, but they strike me as either too common sense to rate more than a "duh," or not important enough to warrant inclusion in a list of so-called "secret" tips. A piece of advice for students in the online world? Don't make the mistake of thinking an online class will require less effort than an on campus one. Be sure to stay on top of the work, don't procrastinate. Check the course website regularly. And read everything that is posted by the instructor!

We are overrun with squirrels - we have moved the bird feeder several times to try to outsmart them - but they hang by their back feet from a branch, next to it, using their little hands to get the seed so their weight isn't on the feeder, and the trap doors stay open. We do have some birds coming also, but I think every squirrel in Castleton is coming here, they far outnumber the birds. Ma says, "tie the cat out there."

Speaking of the cat, we moved the bird feeder to a bracket near the kitchen window (we still throw corn on the ground for the squirrels) and now Edna is perched on the sink, watching the "banquet." It is a real banquet for the birds, and an imaginary one for her.

Bob and I had a funny conversation last night. Strange, but funny. We were discussing the odd weather - such a warm winter. Then, today it is extremely windy and the temperature is dropping something like 60 degrees in a 24 hour period. So I said, "maybe the world is ending." He agreed, suggesting that the assumptions that it has to be by freezing or fire could be wrong. I told him that if it is, I don't want to be one of the chosen ones, who is left to pick up the pieces. I might be capable, but I am not interested. That got us to thinking about writing up a list of rules for the new world. Something that future people could find and follow, believing prophets were the authors. Some of our bullets: In the New World, there will be no cars. In the New World, there will be no television. In the New World, there will be no lattes. In the New World, there will be no WalMarts. In the New World, there will be no Targets. In the New World, there will be no sports. In the New World, everyone will be a vegetarian. In the New World, wine will be free. There were others, but I'll stop there. It would make a science fiction story, if I was so inclined.

I don't want you to think from this that I am some kind of conspiracy theorist, or caught up in morbid end of the world thinking. Nothing could be farther from the truth. This is the sort of stuff we would amuse ourselves with in college - groups of friends would sit around, talking about the new ideas we were learning, and letting the conversation meander wherever it wanted, sometimes into absurd territory. I see an absence of that today on campus, it is crowded out by cell phones, blackberries, instant messaging, television, ipods. But then my day class this semester seems to be a throwback, filled with students who are introspective, and like to discuss theories. So perhaps I shouldn't generalize.

One other thought, about students. I am struck, every semester, about how so many people look alike. I have about 120 students every semester, in my four classes. Approximately 90 of them are in my on campus classes. In every class, I have a few students who either look almost identical to someone from a past semester, or resemble some friend or relative of mine strongly.

Here's a nice column from the Troy Record.

We celebrated Valentine's Day at Lombardo's. There are a lot of restaurants I like a lot, but that is easily my favorite Italian restaurant in Albany.

I'm caught up on my work (sent off a book review I've been working on yesterday), so I started to read Wilderness Tips by Margaret Atwood. I haven't read any of her short story collections before, but as with all her books, it is a good read so far. I am two stories into it.

Last night we saw Phantom of the Opera at Proctor's. It was great! We'd seen it before, in 1994 on Broadway and it was wonderful (that's a funny memory, maybe there's a story there for another time). The movie from a couple of years ago was an abomination! Ugh! All DVDs of it should be confiscated, and snapped in half. I am happy to have seen it again live, to erase the image of that piece of crap out of my mind.

Tomorrow we are going to see 1776 at the New York State Theatre Institute.

I've figured out the dynamic in my lower division class...it is 57% male! That's rare at this university, and unheard of in the school of education.

Lately, we have had a run of movies from Netflix that I didn't enjoy very much. First, was Dogville. Twice I tried to watch it - and both times ended up turning it off after torturing myself. Then it got sent back. Next, Brazil. I'd seen parts of it on TV before, and found it interesting. But the first time it came in the mail from Netflix, the DVD was damaged, and wouldn't play after a while. The replacement was in good shape. I enjoyed the movie more than the awful Dogville, but it was too long. Way too long. After a while, I lost all empathy for the characters. Finally, 25th Hour. This movie was more watchable than either of the other two disappointments, but again - it was just too long. Why are film editors so reluctant to cut? Not every scene is a masterpiece, or necessary.

Contrast this to PBS, which so often has wonderful, interesting, worthwhile programs. Recently, I saw Influenza 1918. It was amazing! Another history subject that is not covered enough, or at all, in school. In the cemetery behind my house, the one Rudy loved to explore during walks, there is a small tombstone with the inscription: "In memory of all the infants who died in the epidemic during the winter of 1918-19." Yesterday, I met with a prospective graduate student who was telling me that if she could persue her true academic interests rather than more practical ones, she would get a PhD in anthropology. The same is true for me and U.S. History. There are so many topics to research, I would never run out of material. The 1918 flu epidemic is an example.

My 100-level class is going to be a classroom management challenge this semester. In the Fall, the students were serious. Perhaps they were nervous, since most were at college for the first time. But this Spring, there are several young men who are not rude to me or anything - they pay attention politely when I am speaking - but they do a lot of horsing around when there is "down" time, or discussion. Something like classes I remember from high school. I didn't mind so much last night, since we are just getting into the swing, and an active, even at times rowdy class is OK with me - but as the semester goes on, I am going to have to be careful that the atmosphere doesn't disintegrate to the point where the other students get turned off.

This semester, for the first time, my classes are back-to-back, which means that I teach straight from 2:45 to 7, two days per week. I am finding it very tiring. I suppose I will get back into the swing of things eventually, but it is hard to be "on" for that long.

The first week of classes went well. My Thursday class is too big (43 students), but I had a hard time saying no to students who asked to get in after it had closed. It is a lower-division, 100-level course, and last semester it was mostly freshmen. This semester, there are only a handful of freshmen, and about an equal number of seniors, who had to get special approval to take it.

My day class was quite active in discussion yesterday. That was great! I hope they stay this engaged all semester.

The dogs have been a real handful today. There was a lot of noise coming from the living room this morning, so I went downstairs, and Sam had gotten a shoebox with my new shoes in it. He had taken all the tissue paper out, and was running all around with my shoes in his mouth. It was cute as he-l. He didn't damage them, and has not chewed up any shoes ever - but there's always a first time. Then, this morning, Bob tried to start Sophie's shots. (She had extensive blood tests at the holistic vet and the recommendation was for us to give her injections of adrenal cortex, like we did for Rudy.) But she became vicious, as she did when we tried to cut her nails. She isn't having any of that, I guess.

Classes start tomorrow! This has seemed like a fairly long break, so I guess I am ready. I'm getting inundated with requests to get into one of my classes - the online class in particular. I don't like turning students away, but I can't handle enormous classes, and in my experience, students who wait until the last minute usually are not great students. This is especially true in the online class.

It snowed today!

A friend has died. We worked together years ago when I first moved to the Capital District. We kept in touch over the years because we both were living in Castleton. He was a nice, warm, caring, funny person who loved animals, especially cats. I saw him shortly before Christmas and he seemed very ill, not himself at all. But I have a much better lasting image of him, when on his 40th birthday, all of his friends at work chipped in and sent him a Zing-A-Gram.

Yesterday, we took the train to NYC and saw The Woman in White on Broadway. We did not have high expectations, since we have the CD and neither of us was wild about the music - but the actual show was great! Afterwards, we intended to go out to dinner, and so we walked from the theatre toward the station. But it started to rain very hard - we got soaked, even with our umbrellas. It brought back a lot of long forgotten memories, of some of the trivial reasons why I was never very happy when I worked there (there were also a lot of not-so-trivial reasons that I have never forgotten). Anyway, we decided to take an earlier train home. It was snowing when we got back, and today is quite a cold day.

I watched the second half of this interesting program, Country Boys, on PBS last night. I missed the first half (I forgot it was on and watched the movie Crash instead) and I didn't catch Monday's episode either. But it is available on the Internet. It finishes tonight. I think I will buy the DVD to show excerpts in class.

Here's what we did this weekend:




Edna stays safely out of Sam's reach:




Sophie waits for Santa:




Our Sam:

My latest letter is in today's Olive Press.

Happy New Year!