Etgar Keret, one of Israel's foremost contemporary writers, spoke in my class today. He was very approachable, intelligent, witty, and all around inspiring. Look up his short stories online -- some of them are available through the LA Times and NPR's This American Life -- they're weird in a wonderful way. My students were great, too! I was very ( Read more... )

Even though I got some good sleep last night, I still feel rather like there's a delay between the world and my apprehension of it. That's okay -- Wednesdays are actually not my hump days but my valley days, and I can take a few hours to recoup tomorrow ( Read more... )

Even though I feel like I didn't get enough sleep this weekend, I'm still in a pretty good mood. My brain sure feels like it's running slowly, though!

Today I saw an Israeli film called Jellyfish. It's quite charming.

I think I will give myself the night off. There are a number of things I should do, but none of them have to be done by tomorrow. ( Read more... )

Sorry for the image. It feels true, though.

I'm thankful that we've had a very wet year in Arizona, so that I saw a completely different desert when I took my guests to the Desert Botanical Gardens today. The saguaros were positively FAT! The ocotillo that usually looks dead (but isn't) was garnished in tiny green leaves all up and down its spiny ( Read more... )

Last night I stopped feeling cranky after eating a large dinner, putting on a couple of Firefly episodes, drinking some caffeine, and then playing The Sound of Music. I even pushed through two loads of laundry, other assorted housecleaning, and 50-some short assignments.

Today I did quite a bit of housecleaning, and then finished the remaining short ( Read more... )

I'm wearing my crankypants today, and I don't know why. It's probably because I feel overwhelmed by my list of things to do. Also, sometimes moods fluctuate -- I guess I'm just having a grouchy day ( Read more... )

Today is enigmaticblue 's birthday! Happy Birthday, J! I hope that you get exactly the year that you deserve, that is to say, a very, very, very very good one! Your family, friends, colleagues, cat -- everyone in your life -- is lucky to know you. Thank you for being awesome.

I am also thankful that -- relatively speaking -- I live in a society that believes in ( Read more... )

I filed my taxes! I'm going to get a big refund! It's over! I can gloat that I didn't wait until April 15 (as I have been wont to do...)!

YAY!

I don't teach on Wednesday afternoons, which means I should be catching up to all kinds of work. Note my use of the word "should" -- it means I'm not doing it right now ( Read more... )

Today I am thankful that bluebombardier is my cousin. She is a very talented writer with a distinct voice, and a loving daughter, sister, and cousin. She has high passions and a strange (but hilarious) sense of humor. She is a champion knitter. How lucky I am to know her! By the way, she posts a poem every day in the month of April. Isn't she cool?

I am also ( Read more... )