Today I emulated my students by emailing the department chair to request that we hold our department meeting outside. Three good reasons: (1) our building is beastly hot; (2) the weather outside is warm, sunny, and welcoming; and (3) lately I've spent so much time stuck in front of a computer or a classroom in this building that just stepping outside would feel celebratory--and I've got plenty to celebrate.
First, I got to spend a little time today with a sick colleague whose cheer has been sadly missing from the building. Some people encourage me just by stepping into a room, so I'm glad she was able to do so.
Second, my Concepts of Nature class engaged in a really fun discussion today, led by two classmates who presented excellent discussion questions. I'll never get tired of looking closely at Aldo Leopold's "Thinking Like a Mountain" or Joyce Carol Oates's short story "The Buck," and the students seemed to enjoy it too.
Third, I finally submitted the updated version of the Comedy collection to the copyeditor yesterday after spending the last couple of weeks tracking down distracted contributors, responding to questions, negotiating the finer points of comma placement, and seeking out missing references for the sake of contributors who were, for various reasons, unable to assist. The minute I bundled all those essays into a Zip file and pressed send, I felt a massive burden being lifted from my shoulders. That kind of effort deserves a small celebration, even if the ticker-tape parade has to wait for a later date.
So I hope my department chair agrees to let us go outside. It would do us all a world of good, and if the cursed leaf-blowers show up to disturb our piece, we can throw things at 'em until they go away. Winning!
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