Happy Halloween!

My very first time having trick or treaters---I've always lived in apartments and never had kids in costume come to the door. This year my house is decked out in lights and decorations and I handed out lots of candy. It was fun!

Meanwhile, on the work front, I just can't seem to get organized and get things going on any one thing. Just when I think I have a few moments to get started on something, something else comes up--right now I'm figuring out course concerns (textbook, enrollment issues, etc.) for Spring---how can this take so much time? I have writing to do!!!

I'm off to bed early tonight---early meeting in the morning and I'm exhausted.

Irony

All weekend I was thinking about work projects. Now it is Monday and I am in the office and cannot focus at all on work projects....must be something in the air here.

The Halloween party was a success for a first party in a new town. There were some marvelous drinks and the company and costumes were quite entertaining.

Sunday was a day of cleaning and laundry (and thinking about work projects). And I finally watched Memoirs of a Geisha--what lovely scenary and costumes! And yes, I still like the book better.

I'm thinking about cutting out early and coming up with some fantastic recipe for dinner...

Maybe the work thinking bug will strike again when I step into my home???

Obsession

Friday evening 10 pm and all I think about is getting though the weekend and getting into next wekk. What is wrong with me?? I have a party planned for tomorrow night and expect somewhere between 20 and 30 guests, I have baked snack foods and have my liquor store list and grocery list ready to go for tomorrow morning. A little decorating in the afternoon and I should be set for the event. But in the back of my mind, all I can think about are work related items--research projects in developement mode, writing up data that I already have, and teaching my class. Why am I suddenly obsessed? Where did this burst of work related energy come from? How do I turn my brain off?

Friday, oh lovely Friday!

After 'meta meeting' Thursday, Friday could only be better--just 2 meetings today; however one of them was across campus and it started raining on my way back. 2 minutes after I am back in my own office, it stops. Nothing like wet pant legs for the remainder of the afternoon.

I'm thinking about taking off early to go home and back some cookies. I am having a big Halloween bash tomorrow night and might need a few pre-cocktails this evening in order to get in the party mood.
However, now that I have a couple of hours to myself and there is virtually no one else in the building on this rainy Friday afternoon, perhaps I would be better served by working on a couple sections of a manuscript.....writing when it's raining...it just goes together.

Come on in....

Today I have gotten exactly nothing done due to the enormous traffic in and out of my office. Why are there only 3 meetings on my calendar for today, yet 7 versions of formal and informal (important to someone) interactions have taken place in here. What is up with you today, dear office???

Update: I have now even had a meeting about having a meeting (As Dr. Dice pointed out this must be classified as a 'meta meeting'. )

At my desk..

ready to work. I actually sort of feel like working on writing task, but, alas! I must finishing prepping my course for this afternoon....why do I put that off every week. I can't wait until next semester when I am teaching 2 courses that I really love (and hence, prepping is not such a strain). It's not that I do not like what I am teaching...I really do. However, I have taught this particular course in various forms for the last 15! (is that even possible?) semesters (including summers) with no break...I'm tired of talking about this stuff and no amount of love for my subject can override that fact.

On another note, I have a really great consulting opportunity which involves travel, how stupid is it to take on something like that in the first year of a new t-t job? It's only 3 trips in one semester and great money...and doing something I like to do. Hhhmmm....tempting....

Here we go again. . .

So I have been MIA for quite some time.... After returning from my Europe jaunt I was back in the office for 3 days and then I had house guests (family) for a week and did some sightseeing in new home state. I have now officially seen more of new home state than many of my colleagues who have lived here for several years. It was an adventure..but eventually I had to come back to work.

So..now I am faced with many writing projects and a severe case of avoidance. I did finally clean my desk off last friday and I had great intentions for the weekend; however, I only left the house once--walk to *bucks to do some grading---spent the rest of my weekend on the couch.

I want to write. I want to write...but I can't seem to get going. I want to write. I want to write.

Back home

Back from the conference/vacation with DA and GB. Where did we go?
Here's the rundown:

• 3 days in Paris
• Numerous little towns in champagne--bonus! we were there during harvest time and saw the grape pickers in action. We met the cutest family in a tiny village who invited us to their midmorning meal. The men were in the fields and the women were making food for 50 people in the kitchen--they were lovely!
• 2 nights in a B&B in a chateau (with a moat--how cool!)
• 1 night in a cute hotel in the middle of nowhere--a bit of a walk in the country and a wonderful meal.
• 3 days in little university town in Germany for the conference
• Found a festival in Heidelburg--nothing like beer stands everywhere serving beer in glass steins to people wandering the cobblestone streets.

It was a super vacation-I mean conference for work.......

However, my return home has been difficult--I was welcomed by a sick kitty (I think she went on a hunger strike?) and a car that wouldn't start. Much stressing and distressing about the cat, a tow truck and $400 later, I have car that is running and a cat that seems to be on recovery road--thank goodness!!! Now....back to work.....