Happy Birthday, Katie!

I admit defeat. White flag is up.

I will stop fighting the inevitable, and go with the flow.

have the strangest urge - if i were to have another son, i am inspired to name him "wistful"... an under used name these days.

Canada Post... More Rant

Canada Post makes me wish I had a big dog. A mean one. Yet again, more foul ups. With absolute impunity. Yes, I know the argument that they do deliver a lot of stuff, with relatively few errors considering the volume, yadda yadda yadda... But when they do foul up, they do it SPECTACULARLY.

sleeeeeeeeeeeeeep

sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!

sleepy sleepy sleepy...

sleep now?

lol - for realz

I had forgotten how much I love this movie - seriously, made me laugh outloud, and not many movies really do that for me beyond a snort or breathy smile. If you have a mom (or if you are one), this movie may do the same for you. Possibly Al Brooks' best work to date (at least since Lost in America), yet sadly under appreciated.

Happy Birthday, Mum

Didn't get her card or gift in the mail, because I suck.

But Happy Birthday, Mum.

We love you!

Old Familiar Blues

Being behind in my work, combined with the loneliness and cabin fever of winter, my mood is slipping into gloom today. Declan is great, but everyone around me has things going on, and all I need (and what I can't get) is a little conversation - other than "nah nah nah buh," I mean.

oh bugger

I am behind, again. Always. Forever.

Things to nail this weekend:

- finish off the draft of that waaaaay behind publication project and get it the hell off my desk

- read The Symposium again and prepare notes so I can teach on it on Monday

- sketch out notes for my Annie Hall showing (Feb 5), and possibly finish the speaking notes

- sketch out notes for my RE103 lecture, and decide what exactly my topic is

- finish going through my communitarian articles; possibly seek out more?

- finish outlining the next diss chapter, and get that underway

Priorities

Stood in a bus shelter today with a woman - she was stylishly dressed, but smelled like hotdogs.

Yes I Can. And So Can You.

Yesterday, we saw a ray of hope shine through. I don't know if Obama is the saviour people make him out to be, but what matters is the way he's made people feel. No one person can fix the situation the world is in, but if the way he embodies the old Capraesque ideals we've lost along the way makes us feel the drive to live better, raise our kids better, and treat each other just a little bit better, then I have great hope for the future.

Congrats, Mr Obama - it's a tough job, and I wish you luck. I wish us all luck.

What's Non-Functional Crap?

Google Video Chat, that's what.

Pass it on.

Update

Well, I have been working, and not sleeping very well, and much preoccupied. I really should get back to the blog, but some days things just don't come easily. And other days, I am using up all my words on work.

If my life were a Magic Eight Ball right now, it'd say "Answer Hazy." Some things are going ok, but other things... Well, no one ever has all their balls in the air at the same time, I guess.

I am trying to keep my chin up.

I'm up, and not happy about it... I guess I may as well get some work done.

bluh

The Notebook is Crap - Why Won't You Admit it?

Ugh. Just finally made it through The Notebook. Maudlin, geriatric version of 50 First Dates. The most interesting thing about that steaming pile of nothing was the ridiculous handlebar mustache on her father. I had to force myself to stick with it, when my instinct had me wandering away every twenty minutes. The only way I made it to the end is because I was waiting for something (ANYTHING) to happen

SPOILER: NOTHING DOES.

Is this what passes for beloved movies nowadays? WTF?

Wilfrid Laurier High

Got an email today that says that the office the teaching assistants were using for our office hours last term is no longer available. We only had it last term because one faculty member was gone for the year - now they are warehousing a limited hire there for the term. It is completely disappointing and underwhelming to go to a school where money is made through the use of tutorials and TAs, which requires us to hold office hours, but which is so cramped and pitiful it doesn't even have a real shared space we can book for student consultation. Now, I face either using the tiny study space we share with all the grad students in the building, or use the prof's office. Alternatively, I am thinking of just sitting in the Second Cup for an hour a week, as that seems just as private as the shared study space, but a bit less mind numbing.

Between the skimpy teaching staff, the cheap-assed funding, and the cramped quarters, I admit to being disheartened by my university. Undergrad schools that do not have the money or space for grad programs should just be happy with their underclassmen. This rush to grad programs not only over extends schools, but lures grad students to a pit of poverty-stricken despair.

An old prof has asked if she can give my email to a couple people who are applying here for PhD... I will have to restrain my bitterness, but I really can't encourage them. Better to go somewhere with the resources.

Like offices.

howdy 2009

Well, the new year has come, and all is fairly well.

Working, working, working to meet a couple deadlines (one publishing, the other dissertation), and I think/hope I can actually make them. We'll see.

Rearranged some things in my apartment to make working easier (I hope). Again, we'll see.

Wish me luck!