Monday, April 10, 2006

I'd rather be researching

I've been working on my K'zoo research/paper this morning, but now it's lunch time and time to switch to teaching responsibilities. But I don't want to! I want to continue reading and writing. This is a far cry from the beginning of the semester when I couldn't switch my brain from teaching to research (if you'll recall). Why is that? What's the difference?

I'll tell you the difference: grading. Ugh. Only 5 more papers left but I really, really don't want to do them. And even though we're doing Mankind in my medieval lit class tomorrow and I love that play and love teaching it because I get to be rude and silly and get students up and taunt them in Middle English -- despite all that, I've got no energy for teaching.

Please, please let this semester be over soon. I'm pooped.

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

I want to work on my research too! I was so bummed today because I usually spend Monday mornings/early afternoon researching, but today I had realllllly overdue grading and then I had a depressing meeting with my chair and then a very therapeutic bitch/strategy session with a colleague, and suddenly there it was, all my research time gone. Phooey. I want the semester to be over, too!

(and I'm looking forward to Kzoo!)

Unknown said...

Hear Hear! I just got 18 papers in today...blech.

Is your K'zoo paper going well?

Dr. Virago said...

Ugh, no it's not. Well, actually, it sort of is, but it's still all just random notes and it's really speculative. But I keep telling myself that a) my panel has four people, so with introductions I only have to talk for 12 minutes, and b) it's okay for a conference paper to be speculative. Oh, and I'm on the last day in the last time slot, so no one's going to be there anyway (well, except for Wiseass and MorganLF and Crafty Jew, because I'm their ride to DTW airport).

meg said...

My research paper is the last session too. Like anyone's going to see us. It's not really a paper unless there are more spectators than panelists.

Hey, what's the latest word on mid-evilest get-together at Kazoo?

Dr. Virago said...

Wiseass and I still have to figure stuff out -- unless she already asked Elisabeth to reserve a room at the brew pub and I just haven't heard. Anyway, we both got hit with, well, crap, and got a little distracted, but I think maybe we should figure things out by the end of the week.

History Geek said...

If you aren't giving yours the same time a fellow blogger friend I promised to give moral support to, I'll be there. I have the last flight out on sunday.

*slightly depressed over being a 25 year old undergrad. Mourns her wasted youth*

Karl Steel said...

Yeah. I asked my diss. chair, who's been in this business since, well, sometime in the 70s I think, if grading ever becomes anything less than total agony.

Immediate response: "no."

My Kzoo paper exists as a pile of crap. First I need to finish this chapter. No. First I need to grade this set of papers. Turn in the chapter. Then write the paper, probably in that Window between the last day I teach and the day I fly to Kzoo. Hopefully I won't actually be working on it while I'm there....

Karl Steel said...

Oh, and I used the adjective "funky" twice in the class I just taught. And my antepenultimate sentence of the class?

"Jesus, that took a long time."

Is that the end of the school year I hear calling me? My evaluations are going to be, uh, "funky."

Another Damned Medievalist said...

I will definitely have to step my language skills up a notch for the new job ... I speak far too colloquially in class. ANd sit on tables. And wear jeans on Fridays ...

Shit.

So, it's two days later, Dr. V -- how's it going?

Dr. Virago said...

So, it's two days later, Dr. V -- how's it going?

Ha! Well, at least the *papers* are done. The K'zoo paper? Not so much.

But, I have made an appointment to get my car tuned up and the broken back seat belt replaced, which will make the gaggle of other medievalists I'm driving to K'zoo very happy. And I have also made an appointment to get my hair cut this evening, which makes *me* very happy!

So, *something* has been accomplished this week!

And Karl -- your comments inspired my latest post. And I should've added to it that I say "crap!" a lot in front of my class when I realize I've left something in my office, etc.

Another Damned Medievalist said...

I say, "way the hell" and "great big honking" a lot