5/8-5/9: winding down the academic year

Bringing things to a close for the semester and the year.  I've had my last group and individual meetings with students for now, and there's only one more set of papers for me to look at tomorrow morning before submitting grades.

5/7: head start & back log

I finished my grading for the day and even began tomorrow's.

I hadn't been to our postal box in town for awhile, so there was a small stack of postcards waiting for me when I went this afternoon.  Among them, a view of Mt. Fuji (one of my favorite postcard subjects) reflected in one of the lakes around the mountain.  If a view of Mt. Fuji is lucky, will a view with a reflection bring double the luck?

5/6: grateful for

Latin inscriptions.

A bright, bright flash of a bluebird in the sunlight.

This story (click to listen for yourself) from the radio show "Snap Judgement."

5/5: lost in a book

I've had a spare book published by Persephone on my shelf, ready for a day when I needed a break/treat, and today was just such a day.  The book I'd been keeping on tap was Amy Levy's Reuben Sachs.  When I chose it I was only going on the implicit recommendation that Persephone had published it, and I'm so glad I read it.  Now I need to pick another Persephone standby.

5/4: home work

I finished my work at school early.  I needed to watch Purcell's Dido and Aeneas opera in order to read a student's paper on it, so I came home and popped in the DVD.  The cats curled up with me.  It was work--really.

5/3: morning discovery

I read through the most recent New York Times Book Review while I ate breakfast this morning, and I was excited to see that Alison Bechdel has published a new graphic novel memoir.  I ordered it right away.

5/2: steady

We're in final exam period until the 10th, and last week I drew up a schedule for test-making and paper-grading.  If I can do a steady amount every day I won't find myself with a frightening stack of stuff at the end.  So far I've stayed on track.  Here's hoping that writing about it doesn't jinx it!

5/1: open

Yesterday the cactus plant near our front door had a row of buds.  Today six of them were open, open, open.  I took some photos (of course), and here's a view that's so close-up that the color becomes nearly abstract, or a thing unto itself, like wings of light.