Sunday Night Reflections

The past few weeks have been eventful. A lot is going on. Sometimes it feels a bit like I’m running in circles.

First, it’s the end of the semester. Last Wednesday was the last day of classes, during which I gave an exam. Now I’m trying to grade that exam so that I can assign final grades for my graduating seniors. Naturally, some of my students are also writing papers to fulfill their ‘writing requirement’ toward graduation. Those papers I won’t see until next Wednesday. Well, except for the occasional draft that comes across my desk, which I need to read ASAP. Oh well, the challenge of teaching and grading will be wrapped up by Thursday.

There’s the senior theses that also need to be read. Luckily, I only need to read them and decide what level of honors they deserve. I don’t have to review them closely, or check them for grammar and syntax. That’s good. I only have to read them. It’s only time. I haven’t seen any of them yet. I hope they’re good. Once they’re off the desk, then my summer has begun.

Summer, of course, means ‘field season.’ I’m planning to head out West this summer, to Utah and Wyoming. I gotta figure out when that trip will be. It’s loosely planned right now, but I need to pin some things down. My husband would kinda like to know when I’ll be around.

Summer also means internships and lab work. I’ll have at least one student working in the lab this summer on a large research project. She’ll be great and I doubt that I’ll have to helicopter over her much, but it still means that I’ll have to be ‘around.’ That’s OK. I might have another shorter-term intern working on another project. Both projects are continuations of what I’ve already been working on, but are in no way related to each other. In both cases, I’ll likely have to refresh my memory a little. It’s just time, again. But geez, I really would like to just sit down and write. Or exercise.

Speaking of exercising, swords are on my mind a lot as well. Now that the weather is more cooperative, I’m trying to scoot to Ithaca (two hours away) at least every other week for a fencing lesson. I’m loving studying fencing. Hopefully, I’ll eventually get pretty good. That is, if my body doesn’t fall apart first.

My poor aching body. Last fall, I started having all kinds of hip pain. I don’t think I’m old enough for this, but finally, a month ago, I cried uncle and found a sports medicine doctor. My hips are killing me, and my knee is being the grump that it’s always been. In the past week, I’ve learned that there may be an actual, mechanical problem in my hips, and I may have had it for the better part of my life, only now it’s started to hurt. I don’t know yet. I’m in limbo, and it’s frustrating. I want to keep fencing (and I will). I want to go running, too! But I can’t even run a quarter of a mile without the pain returning to my hips. Ugh!

There’s a thousand other things I want to do too. I have sewing projects for days. And there’s that armor I’m constructing from plastic barrels that I want to finish (if I’d quit setting fire to it!). And the garden is screaming for my attention. And all these chickens! And my book. Or books! I want to write. Where will I find the time?

And don’t forget, I have a son that needs me and a husband who wants to see me once in a while.

Slump

Good air in, bad air out.

I can do this. There’s time. So much exciting stuff to do, but there’s time.

Right?