9/29: Issa
Issa is the name of a dog in a poem by Martial. We had translated it in class on Tuesday, and today we enjoyed talking about what the poem could be up to. Turns out, quite a lot.
9/28: inscriptions
In the intermediate Latin class today we translated some inscriptions, and it was a really nice change of pace.
9/27: on our shelf
Chris and I both--but separately--recently remembered a book we had borrowed from a library in upstate New York in 2000. Neither of us could remember the title though we could picture other things about the book distinctly, and we thought we knew the author's name but initial searches online didn't lead us to it. Finally we pinned it down: it was Funny Ways of Staying Alive by Willis Barnstone.
What's a bit odd is that we didn't entirely love the book when we read it--but it was interesting enough (and our ambivalence interesting enough?) that something about it stayed in our minds all this time. It seemed too coincidental that we both had thought about it recently, so I decided we should have a copy. It's out of print, but I ordered a used copy and it arrived today. It's now part of our household. It felt like something of a reunion to see those pages again and have them match up with my memory.
What's a bit odd is that we didn't entirely love the book when we read it--but it was interesting enough (and our ambivalence interesting enough?) that something about it stayed in our minds all this time. It seemed too coincidental that we both had thought about it recently, so I decided we should have a copy. It's out of print, but I ordered a used copy and it arrived today. It's now part of our household. It felt like something of a reunion to see those pages again and have them match up with my memory.
9/26: three chapters
...of Trollope read and commented on. My progress is much slower than I'd like, but at least I got some done!
9/25: good email
I was worried about an email I had to write yesterday, but I got an answer today that reassured and relieved me.
9/24: goods, plural
My body has been odd today: I've felt shaky pretty much the whole day, as if I'm worried or nervous or about to cry, but I'm not. I don't know what's caused it, but it's a good thing that I noticed it happening and have been gentle with myself.
Chris went flying in the morning and after taking off in Pine Bluff for the return home had to loop back to that airport to make an emergency landing because something in the plane's engine broke. That part is not so good, but it's undeniably great that no one got hurt, Chris landed the plane without further damage, and his training helped him make a landing that was as safe and smooth as possible.
I finally (finally finally) hemmed four pairs of pants. This needed to happen long, long ago, but at least it's happened now.
I exchanged some texts with my dear childhood friend. She lives next to my mother, so she also sent me some photos of the flowers blooming in my mother's garden.
We got a very interesting set of pieces for our found-in-the-public-domain series at Heron Tree, and we accepted two of them. We read blind, so I didn't know until after we decided about them that they were submitted by a long-time reader/supporter of Heron Tree, and that's especially sweet.
Chris went flying in the morning and after taking off in Pine Bluff for the return home had to loop back to that airport to make an emergency landing because something in the plane's engine broke. That part is not so good, but it's undeniably great that no one got hurt, Chris landed the plane without further damage, and his training helped him make a landing that was as safe and smooth as possible.
I finally (finally finally) hemmed four pairs of pants. This needed to happen long, long ago, but at least it's happened now.
I exchanged some texts with my dear childhood friend. She lives next to my mother, so she also sent me some photos of the flowers blooming in my mother's garden.
We got a very interesting set of pieces for our found-in-the-public-domain series at Heron Tree, and we accepted two of them. We read blind, so I didn't know until after we decided about them that they were submitted by a long-time reader/supporter of Heron Tree, and that's especially sweet.
9/22: into year 9
My first blog entry here was on 9/21/2008, so I've now started my ninth year of daily good things. I haven't managed to post something for every day (except for 2015--yay!) and it hasn't magically made me into a massively more optimistic person (though I hoped it would), but I think it's helped, as a slow transformative discipline, to push me to be accountable for noticing good things amid my frustrations and worries. And that's a good thing.
Also good: Chris showed me where some slender ladies' tresses were blooming in our woods.
Also good: Chris showed me where some slender ladies' tresses were blooming in our woods.
9/20: in the cafeteria
...vegetarian curry for dinner. And we got to see the wonderful person who checks everyone's i.d. card as they go in to eat.
9/19: working
...on another installment in my found poetry/erasure project over lunch. And then showing Chris the results from Friday and today.
9/18: sunday syllabub
Having enjoyed syllabub in July with my mother, I wanted to make some for Chris to try. I forgot fresh lemons when we went grocering, but no worry: I made it with blood orange liqueur and limes.
9/17: clarity about a shadow
For the past few months a little shadow at the back of my mind has kept me from doing something that I kept telling myself I should do. Today the little shadow was justified, and "should" has become "shouldn't."
9/16: luminous terrain
I uncovered the phrase "luminous terrain" in a found poetry project I worked on over lunch (erasing portions of Ovid's Latin selectively to make English words), and this evening the moonlit water was its own kind of luminous terrain. I thought there might be fishermen on the pier when I went there to take photographs, but instead I found a group of people painting the full moon rising over the lake.
9/14: under control
My prep for tomorrow's teaching is far enough along that I can go to bed early--which is good because I can barely keep my eyes open (literally).
9/11: in the creek
I shuffled my plans to take advantage of the sun this afternoon and walk in the creek for a bit.
9/9: almost full house
...at the play-reading tonight. The annual staged reading of the playwriting contest winner is one of my favorite events of the school-year, and it was great to see so many people there enjoying themselves.
9/8: good things
In my gathering of first-year advisees this afternoon I asked each of them to share a good thing that they recently experienced. I think we'll make it into a weekly thing.
9/7: reading
...some assignments my students wrote. I'm glad I structured the assignment the way I did, and it's really interesting to read what they came up with.
9/5: two sights
A morning sight: In our un-air-conditioned state the cats decided that the warm cozy bed was too warm to be cozy, so they slept sprawled out where they could feel the night and morning air from the windows. I smiled, upon waking, to see both of them there and so obviously enjoying the breeze.
An evening sight: a door to one of our water district's pump houses has been painted. This may not seem like a big deal, but Chris (who is on our water district's board) has been trying to get someone to paint this door for months, at the request of the resident who lives nearby. First it was too hot, and then it was too rainy. Now finally the door has gotten its fresh coat.
An evening sight: a door to one of our water district's pump houses has been painted. This may not seem like a big deal, but Chris (who is on our water district's board) has been trying to get someone to paint this door for months, at the request of the resident who lives nearby. First it was too hot, and then it was too rainy. Now finally the door has gotten its fresh coat.
9/3: cool air continues
...and it's an especially welcome thing since the motor on our air conditioner stopped working.
9/2: good air
Cool air in the early evening on the lake. And then into night, sleeping with the windows open.
9/1: microwave and more Martial
Chris used the microwave to soften some butter so we wouldn't have to wait for an hour or two before making cookies.
And it was fun to spend time with a student's choice of Martial poem this morning, reminding me of how much I like teaching Martial in the upper-level classes. So often his poems are used in beginning Latin textbooks since they're short and humorous, but the students like them so much better later in their time with Latin.
And it was fun to spend time with a student's choice of Martial poem this morning, reminding me of how much I like teaching Martial in the upper-level classes. So often his poems are used in beginning Latin textbooks since they're short and humorous, but the students like them so much better later in their time with Latin.
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