I don't really ever have downtime in the sense of nothing on my to-do list. I do enough committee work that there is always more paperwork and planning that can be done.
But classes have been over for a few weeks and I haven't been goofing off so there is less and less that needs doing. I'm used to running on panic adrenaline 24/7 so it is hard to decompress.
The pandemic is keeping us from traveling for the holidays which helps a bit.
I've been teaching for over thirty years, so this is my 60-something'th semester and it's coming to an end. Because of the pandemic we do not want students returning to campus after Thanksgiving. My TTh class ended this morning; the final exam is in over two weeks.
I feel as if I know my students but through some kind of translucent filter. I don't know their facial reactions except for Zoom chats one-on-one. Their voices often come from the ceiling when they speak over streaming.
I know that the pandemic will improve and before I retire teaching will be more normal if not the same as its been. Very unsettling.
I lost a lot of who I was on Election Day, 2016. Donald Trump had been in my media feed for many years when I lived in CT and NY. He was a braggart without any compassion, and somehow he ended up being our president, campaigning by attacking the most vulnerable.
It's been hard to crack jokes, hard to relax, hard to enjoy life as migrant children were abducted, Muslims were banned from flying into our country, hate crimes abounded, and our government screwed up defending us from a pandemic.
Joe Biden has today been declared our President-Elect. He has been in my media feed for as long as Trump has been as a prominent Senator. I've not always been happy with his performance---he has a lot to atone for with respect to how Anita Hill was treated---but he was a sound voice as Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and an active partner to Barack Obama in a presidential administration that was as good as any I've lived through.
During the election I've encountered tales of private moments where Biden sought to comfort those in sorrow, and they seem unstaged and consistent with who he is. Far from perfect, he dubbed himself a transitional candidate and chose a gifted woman of color as his running mate.
There are so many bad things to deal with, the pandemic, the climate crisis, the hatred running amok in our country. I feel better, not good, but so much better knowing that Joe Biden will be leading us as we face these challenges and not the sadist Donald Trump.
It's been hard dealing with the arthritis. I have my good and my bad days with my knee; the cane provides a lot of stability that stops my lower back from seizing up.
My hands hurt continually now. Interestingly enough not when typing, but for most other activities.
So far I'm getting through but the effort wearies me. I miss my former stamina.
Suddenly my quality of life has degraded. My left knee is in constant pain, as our my thumbs. X-rays show arthritis.
I had expected arthritis if I lived long enough, but I thought that 59 was a bit early. I need to adjust my expectations of what I can accomplish and how I wish to exercise.
Pain is an attentive companion these days.
I've been teaching at my university for 31 years cumulatively. We always begin the academic year with some planning meetings. This is the first time we do not have a Planning Week with everyone gathered together. Instead we had a video address from our president and a bunch of isolated video meetings.
Ah, pandemic.
