Mania!

For the most part, the schedule of an academic is pretty relaxed. Other than the 15 hours a week spent in the classroom and office hours, my schedule is my own to keep. If I want to write or grade papers late at night, that's my perogative. If I want to sleep late on Monday, Wednesday, or Friday* and grade papers in the afternoon, no problem. Still, there are about four times during a semester when things get exceedingly hectic. It doesn't help that I'm an ABD Ph.D. candidate working on a dissertation, trying to get published, and searching for a tenure-track position. This weekend, for example, everything came crashing in at the same time. I graded 100 Communication and Popular Culture papers, compiled a job application for a full-time position (vita, teaching philosophy, research statement, evaluations, sample syllabi, writing sample, transcripts--my app looks like a freakin' book), and finished a journal article (which will be sent out on Friday ::crosses fingers::). Despite the hecticness of it all, I actually feel surprisingly good. My back is killing me, a sure sign that I'm repressing some stress, but I feel great mentally. Today is a day to recuperate a bit. I'm doing some journal reading, catching up on email, and hoping to go for a long run late in the afternoon. After that, Smallvilleand Angel with Kathleen.

Life is good.

*8:30 is late these days. How pathetic is that?