Deep Breathing. Ow. Mmmmm.

One of the drawbacks of accepting a position at Small Midwest College, or any small liberal arts college for that matter, is the lack of a R1 library. If the grant money isn't pouring in, the library usually faces some limitations. I'm not sure why this became such a concern this weekend, like I don't already have enough courses on my worry plate, but it did. So, I spent a few hours poking around the library via the proxy server. Lo and behold, I can access most of the academic journals relevant to my discipline. The library doesn't have a paper copy of several of my favorites, but they do have electronic access. That means I can keep up on current research without any major travel time or photocopy costs. Some of my favorite academic journals include:

Communication and Critical/Cultural Studies.
Journal of Popular Culture.
Philosophy and Rhetoric.
Popular Communication.
Quarterly Journal of Speech.
Rhetoric Society Quarterly.
Text of Performance Quarterly.

I think the only journal I can't access is the Western Journal of Commucation. If I really start to miss that journal, I'll renew my Western States Communication Association membership. That's one concern eliminated.

We're still making progress toward the big move. I spent several hours packing the office and reorganizing the storage unit--I'm boxing and moving every non-essential item. By the time we get the truck on August 4th, most of possession will have been boxed, carried down from our third floor condo, hauled to the storage unit, and stacked. If all goes as planned, we'll be able to back the truck up to the storage unit and quickly walk boxes up the loading ramp. We'll then proceed to the condo and pick up the furniture. I'm guessing the furniture part of the move will take no more than two or three hours. Moving virtually everything in our condo on my own is taking a toll on my back. Thanks to some back exercises I incorporated into my workout about 1.5 years ago, I've had far fewer back problems than I have in the past. Still, I managed to tweak my back this afternoon. Imagine being stabbed just to the right of your spinal column every time you take a breath. Thank the maker for ibuprofen and bags of frozen peas--those wonderful little veggies make one hell of a form fitting ice pack. I have another two or three hours of work tomorrow; here's to a speedy recovery.

As an aside, someone is smoking outside and the wonderful scent is drifting in through the office window. ::inhales deeply:: I miss smoking every. single. day. I'm pretty sure I haven't had the last cigarette of my life. There may come a day when it's necessary to pick up the habit once again. Then again, maybe not. I like to keep my options open in that regard. Today, at least, I choose not to smoke. Things might be different tomorrow.