Playing Catch-Up - The Price One Pays For Going to a Conference When There's a Full Week Ahead. Phew.

If you wanted to know what my Saturday looked like, it was a Muppet-show phenomena. I missed a grant report deadline while away and I promised my cousin I'd have curriculum created for his NBA collaborations in Africa, so I hunkered down on Saturday and composed and composed and composed. There is something about deadlines (and missed deadlines) that can get a Frog cranking out a lot of material quickly.

Then, looking ahead to the calendar of next week, I realized I needed to get on top of my grading. Whereas I work with a majority of in-practice teachers, I often trade Fairfield's spring break with theirs so that I can honor when they have time off from school (and they can actually take a break). I know, I know. I should also give myself a break, but I am still living with the memory of teaching K-12 school. Although my days are long and difficult now, it does not compare to what they go through during their 5-classes a day, 5 days a week. As University faculty, I can chisel time to make myself sane in the chaos. K-12 educators can't.

So, we'll be having class this week, but it's all good, because it is in collaboration with One Book, One Town and Jacqueline Woodson's visit to campus on Monday night. William King, Jessica Baldizon and I have 30 students coming to work with the teachers before we go to the talk...we will have a youth-centered dialogue about Harbor Me (with research methodologies in the back of our minds). Nothing like an opportunity to collect more data.

That is why last night I avoided invitations to hang out and relax, so that I could get a huge chunk of grading done. After I finished the grant report and curriculum, more guilt set in (this is what happens when one flies to another state for a 20-minute presentation). He returns extra-focused on what he neglected to do while he was away,

In truth, too, I was working through anticipation of Chitunga's return to the United States from Puerto Rico and his overnight flight (arriving at 6 a.m. - geez). He's unlikely to swing back home, however, because he has to return to Syracuse for his classes. Although I know he brought work to do while on the island, I also learned he partook in the tomfoolery of his age (pulling an all-night party-fest with his friends). He so rarely does this (well, Joe and Bank filled me in on a few stories from LeMoyne).

I'm writing this on Saturday night, knowing it will post Sunday morning, where I will be awaiting updates about their landing and travel plans.

Then, back at it. I'm determined to finish grading this morning and moving onto the other big events of the week.