Lost Another Vote

We had a faculty meeting where a proposal was voted down that I and a dozen other folk worked on for the past couple of years.  I don't think it's hit me directly but I can't shake the image of the faces of the other committee members.

I've lost more battles than I've won.  Yet I think I've been successful overall.  Is that rationalization?  Patience?  Outlast your opponents?  I'd rather convert them.

Another Break Come and Gone

Fall Break has ended.  I've approached it as I've approached most breaks---high expectations of catching up on work that fail to be achieved.  Classic case of yet again setting myself up for failure with unreasonable expectations.

I do have fond memories of when I used to finish my Christmas shopping on Fall Break.  Now I order most things on-line.

Sleepless Days and Sleepless Nights

Busy work-week---not enough time at work to get things done, too many meetings and stuff.  Lots of work in the evenings, not much sleep.  Becoming more functional, less creative, less human.

The long-term sleep loss and chair's responsibilities have changed me to the point of feeling damaged mentally.  I wonder if I can recover when I stop being chair.  I don't dislike who I am now but I remember being more and miss it.

Single Parent, for Ten Days

Well, my wife is out of town helping her mother recover from surgery.  I miss her.

So far the workload of being a single parent hasn't been too bad, although I have adjusted my goals downward. Laundry is a pain;  I'm keeping piles separated on the bedroom floor, to help know when I've got enough of a given kind of load.

Our son is at a church retreat this weekend, so he's doing okay.  My daughter seems to be doing well;  we spent most of the day together running errands.

One month done

We made it to October.  The semester has been a blur.  I think that I am making all my deadlines but I also feel overwhelmed.

I'm not sure why exactly.  I don't think that I'm anxious about missing some important details or tasks.  The volume is huge but I think that I've been prioritizing well.  The uncertainty each day as to how much unscheduled time that I will have to do my work is a large part of it.