Saturday, December 20, 2008

Shopping!

I'm going shopping in a bit with Paula. We're going to hit the Westfield Shopping Center on Michigan. It's going to be crowded and pushy and hectic, but I'm prepared for all of those things. Christmas shopping at its purest! Here we come! 

(there will be an update when I get home. most likely the update will focus on the bruises I got from little grandmas throwing elbows in Nordstrom to get to the Clinique counter, and my swollen toes, sore from failed attempts to dodge the fervored steps of tantrum-throwing children who want want WANT that Lego Elmo doll.)

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

It's a lovely time to be in my office

The ESL class across the hall is having their end-of-the-semester party. A lot of the students are Latino, and one of the men is playing a guitar and singing in Spanish. They're over there eating food that everyone brought, and taking pictures, and laughing, and the whole thing is just so nice. I wish I could record it for everyone; it's really soothing and making the process of grading these late papers quite a bit more pleasant.

Monday, December 1, 2008

Traffic is the pits. Students are even pittier.

I had an early meeting this morning to get the results of the student grade appeal hearing on the 21st, so I drove in to get there in time. But because of Chicago motorists' tendency to drive like limp fish at the first whiff of weather, it took me nearly three hours to get to campus. So we had to cancel the very meeting I was driving in early for to make. What's even better is that I left the house and forgot my phone still on the dock, charging, so I had to pull off the highway at Belmont and call the secretary from a Citgo payphone to let her know I wasn't going to make it. If only we'd scheduled the meeting for 1/2 hour later, I could have taken the train as usual, made it on time, and I'd now know if I'd triumphed over the little beetle of a student student who complained about being below average, when he was, in fact, below average. 

So, in case you haven't noticed, it's that time in the semester when I cringe with the very idea, the very existence of students. Those one hundred and twenty little imps have spent the past fifteen weeks sapping every ounce of enthusiasm from me, and I'm just a shriveled raisin of a woman, pessimistically sipping red wine and watching television with her terrifically and silently sympathetic husband and dog (a dog who seems skinny today. skinny like he's lost his extra 4.8 lbs., perhaps). There are two weeks left before final grades are due and I'm free from poorly written essays for a month. And that two weeks can't be over soon enough. If you think I sound a bit grim and unpleasant...you're right. I do. Because I am. 

I'll find out at the end of the week about the little beetle of a student, and after this week's classes are over and all I have left to do is wait for the final papers to come in and quickly (oh-so-quickly) grade them. Not so bad, really. And it's already almost Tuesday.

But on to brighter things. I'm off to dust off my snow boots for an early trog through the frozen alley to the car tomorrow. It's not so bad. I've got a new Hercule Poirot mystery to listen to in the car. That is, if I remember to bring my phone...

Friday, November 28, 2008

New Computer!
I cashed in my "One Free Computer" birthday coupon from Trevor this afternoon. We braved the Black Friday crowds--and they were intimidating, indeed--to go to the Michigan Avenue Mac store. It was crowded, but since we knew what we wanted, we were in and out in fifteen minutes. We stopped to get ingredients for the green bean casserole I'm bringing to the Power's post-Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow, then came back home for sandwiches and new-computer hijinx.

The photo above is our family portrait as taken on my new computer. 

Did I mention that today I got a new computer? It's all very exciting. 

Tonight we're staying in and enjoying a lazy couch-fest with a movie (and, if I can convince Trevor [he's not hard to convince], Thai or sushi from Butterfly for dinner). I ordered two pies from our local grocery spot, though I neglected to find venues for them. So Trevor and I will be consuming two pies (one apple, one pear-cranberry, both with oatmeal struesal topping) over the next couple of days. We've already started in on the pear-cranberry, and it's delicious so far. It won't be long until we conquer them both. We might not be able to get off the couch for a little while, but that's okay. Pie is worth it. Yum! 

We spent yesterday's Thanksgiving afternoon and early evening with the family at the Bux Estate in Huntley. We got some excellent news: my cousin Michael got engaged! His girlfriend, Sheena, is pretty fabulous (she's got a Masters in Political Science and likes horror movies. She's impossible not to like), and she and one of her brothers were at the festivities last night. We got to meet her and Michael's puppy, Presley, too. She's was pretty adorable, though it's curious why we're the only couple with a normal sized dog in the family. Yes, everyone, that's what I said. Our dog is normal sized. Your dogs are tiny little shrimps. 

Tomorrow we got to the Power's for a fabulous extended Thanksgiving celebration. I'm bringing a green bean au gratin, and Sean and Angi are picking us up in their Toyota loaner (which will hopefully get the dealership on the ball to get them their real car). Sunday Trevor finally has to go to work, and I've got to grade some papers. Monday morning I get the news about this student grade appeal hearing I had last Friday, so I'll let you know about that. Hopefully logic (me) will overcome entitlement and laziness (not me). Can you tell that it's the end of the semester and I'm a little sick of students right now? It is. And I am.

We're over and out for now; it's off to sushi and pie (not together), and a night on the couch under an afghan. This is the life!

Happy Thanksgiving, all. Love, T. and L. Power and H. Bork 


Thursday, November 27, 2008

Gobble, gobble!

Yes, it's been nearly a month since our last post, and I have no excuses. School is almost finished for the semester (yahooooo!) and I got swept up grading all of my slacker students' late papers and going to grade appeal hearings for other slacker students, and attending meetings to find out the latest negotiations for our contract (We've been teaching since August without one. I've learned a lot about unions this semester. More than I cared to in the span of two months, actually). 

But other than busy-ness, Trevor, Henry, and I have been quite good. We're working our respective butts off (Trevor at his job/s, me at mine, and Henry at the gym because he gained 4.8 lbs. since August) and looking very much forward to the next couple of days. Today we're up to the Buxes house to celebrate Thanksgiving, and then Trevor has the next couple of days off because the gallery is closed. Tomorrow we'll go to the Mac store to get me a new computer (Trevor's birthday gift to me! And speaking of birthdays, I had a great one earlier in the month: everyone sent cards and well wishes, and I got some really thoughtful gifts and I all around felt loved. Thank you everyone!), and perhaps see a movie (I have a gift card from a student of mine [one of my favorites from summer semester] and we want to see Role Models for giggles and Paul Rudd). Saturday is post-Thanksgiving at the Power's, where we will hopefully be playing some Catch Phrase and certainly be eating delicious food. 

We're also THRILLED about our new president-elect, Barack Obama. Although now it's a bit belated, we celebrated (rhymed!) at a neighborhood bar called Archies, where they let us have full run of the place and gave us drink specials. We watched the election returns on their 80" projection t.v. while we ate pizza Dan had brought from Uno's, and we ate cupcakes Liz had baked (50: one for each of the 50 states. I ate Oklahoma. It was delicious). There were about fifty or sixty of us there, and the evening was just a lot of fun, and obviously a success. 

Next week is the last week of classes this semester, and in two weeks I'll have a nearly month-long vacation (And still get paid! It's kind of astounding and I'm still reeling from this perk of being a full time faculty member). I've got quite a bit of work to do while I'm home, though. I'm teaching the creative writing class next semester, and while I'm over the moon with excitement, I'm a bit nervous because it'll be my first time teaching this. I've got to perfect my syllabus by December 13th and then fix up my lesson plans. I'm also the new faculty literary representative for our literary magazine, Voices, so I've got some planning to do for next year's issue, and I'm the new MCC rep. for a writing festival we're hosting at the college in April. I've got to round up four judges for the competition who will also be leading workshops during the festival, and then choose student finalists. It's such an honor to be doing it, but it's going to take a lot of work. I'll let you all know how it goes. 

Well, the kitchen is calling my name; I've got to bake up some macaroni and cheese to bring to tonight's dinner. Yum! Happy Thanksgiving to everyone, and we'll be updating this with much more regularity. Eat lots of turkey, potatoes, and pie! 

Friday, October 31, 2008

Happy Halloweeeeeeen!

It's a beautiful, warm day and it's perfect for dressing up like a monster, princess, hobo, or presidential candidate and wreaking havoc across the city. And by wreaking havoc I mean running around, looking for candy to eat until we can run no more.

We're meeting Dan and Mona at Archie's for some drinks before going to Bull eh Dias for a costume party. Simona's working and will apparently be dressed as a '20's flapper, Dan's going to be the Dow Jones, Mona's going to be Universal Healthcare, Trevor will take on a modern-day Groucho Marx (using the nose featured below), and I'm going to be a jack-o-lantern. Fun will be had by all, and hopefully a lot of candy will be consumed. 


Tomorrow night we're going to hang out with Trevor's uncle Mark, who's coming to the States from Amsterdam for the first Halloween in years. Tomorrow is also Greg's birthday and he's having dinner and beers with friends, so I'm hoping to fit that into the mix as well.

In less pleasant news, Tuesday morning, about 2 a.m., the water heater in the unit above ours split open and flooded our next-door neighbor Sarah's place. We got water leaking through half of our closet ceiling and some bubbling in the bathroom wall, however it's apparently 'ignorable,' said Trevor, compared to Sarah's damage next door. He said that there was literally water pouring through the ceiling, walls, and light fixtures. His glasses fogged up when he walked into her place, and his shoes were getting wet as he stood there talking to her. And of course, she took it all in stride because she's fantastic. Thankfully this time it wasn't my fault! The girl upstairs, though, is out of the country (in Mexico) until Sunday at midnight. She's already submitted a claim to her insurance company (thankfully she has insurance), so we've got to figure out how and when to fix it. Yahoo.

Rather than leave such a fun holiday on such a craptastic note, here's a wonderful shot of Trevor's costume for tonight (while I was writing, he came in dressed up and let me snap a shot). Happy All Hallo's Eve!

Saturday, October 18, 2008

October, Chapter One:
Laura Makes the Front Page


Yes, I made the front page--of the Northwest Herald, the McHenry County newspaper. But still...the front page! Some of you might recall my early Banned Books Week celebration blog and the story about my "religious" student's objections to the book we read in my summer Comp 2 class. Well, she and her mother, dissatisfied with the dean and administration's refusal to discuss the banning of books from any class's curriculum, went to the press. Yup. That's just how crazy they are! It's curious that the NW Herald published the article at all, given the one-sided nature of their information. Much of the article's "facts" are untrue as filtered through one girl and her mother. So have fun, and read on.

Did you like it? I've finally stopped losing sleep over this (just about eight long nights of restlessness and anxiety). Everyone at school has been very supportive, and some of my students have commented on it to me (in my favor, which, though I couldn't say anything, was reassuring). A number of my English Dept. colleagues have used it in their classrooms as examples of biased journalism. The plight of celebrities has finally touched a nerve in me and I'm thrilled to never have something negative written about me again. But I guess that means I'll have to stop disseminating pornography! (damn.)


October, Chapter Two:
Sonny Acres


Last Sunday we went with Sean and Angi to watch the Bears game at Neill, Fran, and Destiny's. Although the Bears lost (it was really a heartbreaker), we had a great time watching with everyone, and then we drowned our sorrows in elephant ears and lemonade at Sonny Acres. None of us got a pumpkin, but we got some goodies nonetheless: carmel apples, chocolate covered pretzels, miniature foam skulls, pumpkin pencils...such good stuff. Destiny was unimpressed by the haunted house, though did like this wrapped up fellow:






For more goats and pumpkin witches, check out Trevor's Flickr page.


October, Chapter Three:
David Sedaris


When Trevor picked me up from the train station Monday evening, he had a surprise: David Sedaris was reading at the Auditorium Theatre and there were still available tickets. We sped home on Trevor's trusty steed (we ride in style), hopped on the bus/train to get downtown, grabbed some tickets, and still had time before the reading to eat some dinner.



The reading was great (although he didn't have the monkey); Sedaris read all original stuff, including something that will be in The New Yorker later this month (likening the "undecided voter" in the upcoming presidential election to an airline diner debating between the chicken and a pile of dog poop peppered with shards of broken glass. Guess who's the poop?). It was a terrific reading and a great idea by Trevor.


October, Chapter Four:
Art Openings, Ribs, and Next Semester


Last night while I was eating ribs and talking books with my friends Angie and J.C., Trevor and Angi Power were checking out art at some gallery openings in the Fulton Market district. Since Flatfiles' openings usually coincide with the other neighborhood openings, Trevor isn't usually able to go. He was excited to see some of the good, the bad, and the pooping:





The ribs I was eating were messy and delicious, and the Rice Krispie treat I got for dessert tasted like it was made with horchata, and was hands-down the best Krispie treat I've ever had. I traded books with Angie, got a couple of dvds--one of an afro-samuri t.v. show starring Samuel L. Jackson, and the other, a movie called The Fall by the same director who did The Cell (dazzling to look at, though not so great on plot)--and got caught up on After-Words gossip. I was just happy to have finally gotten rid of a two-day migraine and successfully turned in my book orders for next semester. I'm teaching two developmental classes, two Comp 1 classes (with a new e-book), and the creative writing class! I'm thrilled and nervous about it and will probably start developing the syllabus soon.

Henry and I went on a walk to the park today and stopped by a corner grocery store that didn't nearly measure up to our corner Green Grocer. But I did get a cherry soda and food for tonight's dinner (I made tacos. Yum). Trevor has also recently become obsessed with a dice game called Farkle, which he's currently playing on his phone right now. He keeps yelling, "Farkle!"

I've got to buckle down tomorrow and grade some papers, and Trevor's got to work. Though we're going to end the night with pumpkin raviolis for dinner, so all will not be lost. Hopefully there aren't more front-page stories in our future, but if there are, you'll all be the first to know. Cheers to the First Amendment, academic freedom, pumpkins, and Farkle!

Saturday, September 27, 2008

The Door

Trevor, Henry, and I went to Door County last weekend to visit Grandma and Grandpa Madel and Jim in Sturgeon Bay. We drove up Friday morning and were only able to stay until Sunday night, which wasn't nearly enough time. But while we were there, I got to go to my very first fish boil (fish, potatoes, and onions boiling in a ten-foot-high bonfire--awesome). Saturday morning, Trevor, Jim, and I had breakfast



and then headed to the Harvest Festival in downtown Sturgeon Bay, where they had a vintage car show. I haven't seen so many gorgeous cars in one place in my life, and I realized how much I love the Mustang Cobra. Here are a few of the beauties we saw:





Then Trevor and I took a road within a road trip and drove up through Bailey's Harbor, Sister Bay, where we saw goats on a roof


(awesome!)

and then Ellison Bay, where we found a great big bookstore and Trevor found a book club first edition of Player Piano.



We capped the night off at Cafe Launch for tapas style dinner with Grandma, Grandpa, and Jim. The food was great, the place was charming, and we had quite a nice time. We spent the next afternoon with G & G Madel; we ate lunch, had some lovely conversation, and watched a video with them. Henry, back at Jim's house, was having a blast running around in the woods with Vader.



For more pictures of our weekend, check out Trevor's Flickr photo page. More will come soon on this weekend's festivities (which are much fewer). Until then, Power On!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008


Kiss My Bookmark

Banned Books Week is still over a week away but I'm faced with a bit of a censorship problem of my own at school, so I've decided to bump up the celebration and make my own Banned Books Two Week (sponsored in part by the ALA and in other part by me).

Over the summer I taught a Composition 2 class at MCC, and the class was focused around the literary genre of oral history. We read the book Underground by Haruki Murakami, using oral history to tell the victims' story of the Tokyo subway gas attack in 1995; we read excerpts from Studs Terkel's My American Century to read chunks of oral history discussing World War II in 'The Good War,' and black and white race relationships in the U.S. from the 50s to the 90s in 'Race.' Then to top off the semester, we read Rant: An Oral Biography of Buster Casey, which is a fictional oral history by Chuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Club et al. Palahniuk has been called a nihilist--for good reason--and he has a number of passages in the book that discuss, graphically, feminine sanitation products, prophylactics, and sex itself. The majority of these passages had direct relation to the plot and the book's characters, and the one that didn't sparked an interesting discussion about Palahniuk's alienation of his audience and the uncomfortable--and possible erroneous--choices he made for the book. Needless to say, the papers analyzing this text were particularly interesting for both me as well as for my students.

Now, here comes the problem: one of my students in the class, a former Composition 1 student of mine from the previous Fall '07 semester, approached me with just over a week left in the semester and with the class having already read half of the Palahniuk book. She explained that she had moral and religious objections to the book, would take an 'F' for the final paper (analyzing the book), and hoped she didn't offend me with her objections. I explained to her that no offense was taken, and since I'd rather she not get an 'F' for the paper, I offered her an alternate assignment. She did the assignment, mentioned no other issues, then approached me 20 minutes into the final exam to ask me, "Well, what should I do, since I didn't finish the book?" Having not prepared myself for such a problem, I told her to do the best she could and make sure to answer the essay questions using the first two books of the semester as comparisons to Rant (because I knew she'd at least have finished those texts).

Well, her final grade was a 'C,' not only because of the less-than-mediocre job she did on the final exam, but for her middle-of-the-road writing and absolute zero class participation throughout the entirety of the eight week semester. Well, once she got her grade, the second week in August, she sent me an e-mail about her 'shock' and disappointment in the grade and how she felt I'd discriminated against her. She also mentioned that by simply attempting to take the final exam, she felt she'd betrayed her God. Okay. After I discussed this with my department chair (a gloriously level-headed woman named Joann) that a sit-down was better than e-mail, we tried for the next four weeks to get a meeting with my student and her Pastor, who she decided would be joining us in this meeting. I made it clear that Joann and I would be fine, nay, happy to discuss the processes to appeal her grade or to request an academic withdrawal (disregard the grade for my class and take the course again with another instructor). We would not, however, be discussing the curriculum. Well, my student didn't quite like this, wouldn't commit to a meeting time for three weeks, then let me know she and her Pastor, realizing that we were only concerned with her grade (A'hem. Yes. That's our job.) would "be forced to seek audience elsewhere." Anyone else think that doesn't come from the phrase-book of a 19-year-old college student?

So she tearfully called my dean, who is as gloriously level-headed as my department chair, and he will be meeting with the student and her mother on Friday. The mother will be there because the student is uncomfortable discussing these matters with a male. Really? Guess so. My dean said he's glad he didn't mention that he was Jewish, or she might not have agreed to a meeting under any circumstances. Apparently the family has called a lawyer (Trevor jokingly said it's going to be the same lawyer who threatened the gallery about a political exhibit they had last month. That same lawyer is currently being disbarred by the Florida State Attorney's office because of his frivolous lawsuits. Real reputable thing going on here. I might give the good ol' ACLU a call myself) and my student's grades have been suffering (according to her mother, she's failing all of her classes) because she had to read this book. Hmmmmm. Sounds like bullshit. Lots and lots of bullshit. Our student life administrator and VP of students will also be present at the meeting (they're both women, and terrific women at that), and they've instructed me not to worry because this kind of thing happens. They're ridiculously laid back about the whole thing, which is, of course, reassuring to me. They said that they'll listen to my student and her mother (they refused to meet with the Pastor) and then tell them that they'll get back to them with a 'resolution.' This resolution might involve a statement drafted by our marketing department about the school's curriculum policy, or a statement from the school's lawyer about academic freedom and our policy of making damn-sure that books aren't banned in a public institution of higher learning. Although I'm sure it will be more legalese than that.

It's a weird feeling to watch this unfolding in front of me, knowing that I was the cause. I've spent the last month and a half bouncing between doubting myself as an educator on one side and feeling great about exposing my students to unconventional ideas and seeing the excellent and legitimately critical reactions to those ideas (on the most part--about 99% legitimately critical, 1% religiously fanatical and insane) on the other side. I was flipping through my Guide to Banned and Contested Books this afternoon to get a title list together of books to get for the BBW raffle I'm doing for my students, and it was, quite quickly as I looked through the 1,300 titles or so, all so terribly real. And this kind of thing happens all of the time. In 2008. In the United States of America.

This afternoon, Constitution Day on MCC's campus, I picked myself up a pocket Constitution, and will keep it at my desk for reference while I await a call from the press, an attorney, or a looney-ballooney calling to berate me about being a God-less heathen. And, as I'm learning, it's all in a day's work. Anyone still think that home-schooling is a good idea? Not so much anymore. Or ever.

Sunday, September 14, 2008

Did our absence make your hearts grow fonder?

I certainly hope so! Sorry it's been such a long time since our last post. Starting school kept me pretty busy, and then once I got into the swing of the full time thing, my students started in turning in papers for me to grade. Who told them to do that?! I've got most of it under control, now. And I took some pictures of my cool new office now that it's finally settled. I still have an entire bookshelf to fill up, but I'm thinking that it won't take me too long to do that.



At the start of the month, the Borks had one of the last parties they'll hold at their suburban home, a Labor Day barbecue. They had the gang over for pulled pork sandwiches and hot-dogs (all deeelicious) and we enjoyed talking about who'll be adopting their old furniture. I got dibs on an end table for a night-stand, and Greg and Paula are going to hold onto my piano until we get a bigger place (although I do think that we could fit it in the bedroom...Trevor does not agree.) And Mom and Dad are getting more and more excited about moving!




This weekend has been a rainy blur. Yesterday our friend Jessica and I braved the damp weather to wander the Renegade Craft Fair up on Division Street. I got some great stuff for me, for Trevor, for Neill, and even for Henry. Since Hank has outgrown his fancy collar, I got him a replacement accessory:



Last night Trevor and I headed out to Hanover Park for a Team 2 Birthday Celebration. It was a belated party for John, Neill, and Letty (who we called, but Mina said was sleeping, so HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY LETTY!), and a preemptive party for Destiny, whose birthday is on the 15th. We got caught up with everyone about babies (Heather and Don's new little girl!), school (Destiny's in student council at Schaumburg and we anticipate that she'll soon be running that place), work, life, and other assorted topics. We ate snacks, pizza, and cake (the cake was baked by Fran Napier, and was perfection. Fran--I had a dream about cake last night. And it was good, but better at your house than in my head). We watched the beginning of the Saturday Night Live season opener, and wondered at what a great Sarah Palin Tina Fey makes. We've been harping about Sarah Palin for the past few weeks, and won't continue our annoyance-filled rants here. All in all, the party was great, though I'm sure that the Team 3 party will be even better. And guess who's on Team 3? Yes, that's right: I am.

We gave Sean and Angelique a ride home from Neill and Fran's and after we'd dropped them off, Sean called Trevor to tell him that Neill had just called him to give him some sad news: David Foster Wallace, a favorite author of Sean's and mine and former English instructor at Neill's college, took his own life last night. He was only 46 and it's quite a loss to the literary community. His prose was involved, frequently footnoted, often brilliant, and always interesting. I, for one, will miss his writing quite a lot.



Tonight we're double-dating with Lisa M. and Josh to the movies to see Burn After Reading, about which we're all very excited. Until tonight, though, I'm watching Rocky (really, a great movie), organizing my papers to grade, doing laundry, and, of course, blogging. Which I should stop, now, to actually grade the papers that are so nicely organized. So until later, readers, keep dry and cozy!

Friday, August 15, 2008

The Borks Invade Canada

Mom and Dad Bork just got back from the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, and they had a wonderful time. Mom made another new friend (remember Honest Abe a few months ago? This guy's even better!)



They saw Hamlet (wonderful!), Cabaret (excellent!), and an adaptation of Moby Dick (interesting...) that turned out to be a ballet (hmph. now that's just odd.). But the trip was an overall success, which is the most important part. The plays, the shopping, and the food were all great.

It's also PAULA BORK'S BIRTHDAY today, and she's celebrating tonight with a dinner. We couldn't make it because of the Henry Tail situation (we've been invited to hang out on a boat tomorrow afternoon for the Air and Water show, and we had to miss that, too). He'll finally get his stitches out on Thursday evening, so we'll be in the clear of our 24-hours-of-every-day-for-two-weeks-with-Henry vacation. I love him, but sometimes we just want to go to the movies. Or dinner. Or on a boat. So in the meantime, he's posed for us to make us remember how ridiculously adorable he is.

Saturday, August 9, 2008

Henry Goes to College

He didn't take a class, or anything, but he's the first family member (and probably the last) to see my new office at MCC. I went to school to turn in my final grades for the summer session, and I started the office "nesting" process: general dusting, putting books on my new bookshelves, moving my desk, chair, and computer. Because of Henry's bandaged tail and stapled stomach, we can't leave him alone just yet, so he made the road trip with me and then helped me in my office (as long as "helping" translates to drinking some water, spilling some water on the floor, and staring out of the office window into the hall to smile at passers-by). He got to meet my new mentor, Robert, and the three lovely secretary ladies, Linnea, Cheryl, and Missy. They all loved him, and he loved them, too, showing his affection through his trademark leaping licks. I can't wait to go back next week to continue organizing books and files. Even though I've only just finished with class, I'm super jazzed to get back to Fall semester now that I'll have a permanent place to work. I've already been looking at office supplies on-line, and Monday I'm going to take a trip to The Container Store and Office Depot to stock up on totally, absolutely, quantifiably necessary office supplies. Paper-clips, here I come!

In the meantime, feast your eyes on my handsome summer students (this first picture is of my last College of Lake County class, who [don't tell anyone] were my favorite class of all time, in any school, ever, although it's missing one of my super-favorite students, Will, so picture a tough looking football player in here somewhere.)


These are my two MCC classes--the big one is a Comp 2 class (my oral history exploration, such a fun class), and the little one is a Comp 1 class)



Next week I'll have a picture of my office, so you can all picture me grading papers and planning lessons. Really, it's such an exciting life I lead!

Thursday, August 7, 2008

A Much Shorter Happy Tail

After two years of spraying blood around our clothes, our condo, our building, and our neighborhood due to the cut-that-wouldn't-heal, Henry's 'happy tail' is gone.



Yesterday we took Henry in for surgery to dock his tail and remove a little fatty 'growth' from his belly. He's recovering well, although the medication made him a bit loopy all night. I've finished with the summer semester, so he and I are hanging out for the next week so that he can heal up quietly and I can make sure he doesn't lick out his stitches (we considered asking the vet to take off a bit of his twelve-inch tongue, but decided against it, so his licking powers are still in full force). Now, mind you, he's still wagging like crazy, but because his tail's so short, it won't be a hazard to anyone or anything, including himself. Tomorrow we'll go back to the vet so they can change his nubbin bandage and make sure he's healing up okay, and then next week he'll get the stitches taken out of his tail and the staples taken out of his belly from the growth removal (As Trevor said, Henry lost one nubbin and gained another).

Once he's completely healed up, we'll add more pictures of his new nubbin. I'm sure you're all just dying to see it!

Monday, August 4, 2008

A Belated Father's Day Celebration

This past Sunday, 3/4 of the Power kids and their significant others went out with John and Fran Power for a post-Father's Day celebration. All 4 Power kids treated their pop to a day at Soldier Field to watch the Barcelona Football Club beat Chivas Guadelahara 5 goals to 2. We all ate before the game at the Eleven City Diner, where the food was good, though the ambiance left a bit to be desired (see Trevor's first ever Yelp review for the details--an addition to his review, they didn't have macaroni salad, which added a dent on its own to my opinion of the place. What 'traditional' deli doesn't have macaroni salad?!). We had a great time, and Trevor snapped a bunch of pictures to show it. It really brought us back to our honeymoon in December, and for that alone we enjoyed the outing.







(In this picture of Trevor and me, can anyone spot a fellow Manchester United fan in the crowd? Angi took this picture, and she made the comment that it was quite a good shot. I certainly agree with her!)