Like bison...

30 September 2026: According to Saeed Jones on the episode of Vibe Check that I listened to this morning, folks say that bison walk (or run) towards storms, somehow knowing that they'll get out faster when they do than if they run from them. "If you go toward the storm," he explained, "you can get to the other side instead of being chased by it."

Maybe, he and Zach suggested, this is how we should treat grief. 

Zach noted, "If you go through it, you'll get through it."

"Keep walking," Saeed added.

Walking up High Street, on a morning when my parents had been on my mind, I thought to myself, "Amen"...and kept going. 

Good morning, moon...

29 September 2026: The combination of feeling sick, stressed, and low-key sad, mixed with a super-long to-do list and another busy week, with (I am guessing?) a splash of the "hormone fun that comes at 49" means that I was wide awake and out of bed before 5:00 and on campus as the sun came up and the moon was still out.

I don't hate it. Like I said, I am wide awake and will get a much earlier start on my list. But I do wonder when the fatigue bill will come due...couldn't have gotten much more than 4 hours sleep last night.

Back at Bender's

28 September 2026: This cold is still giving me a hard time and it's another busy week with a to-do list that isn't getting any shorter. So...I wasn't thrilled about substitute hosting at Bender's tonight. 

But, just like every time, those friendly folks make it a good time. I'm tired, but I had fun.

Done with Rednecks...

27 September 2026: I finished Rednecks this morning, just in time for my book club's discussion tonight. I found it a compelling read. I wanted more about and more time with these characters, but that's not a criticism. Brown does a good job making some of them really pop without a lot of time on the stage. 

He can also write some sentences that stop you in your tracks. Here's a couple about a "touched" miner/explosive expert called Boom, setting up a bomb for a bridge: "The old dynamiter spread his hands across the broad flap of the mailbag and looked to the sky over the bridge, as if envisioning a work of art. 'High as heaven, baby. Gonna tickle the angel's feet'" (254).

Work Cited

Brown, Taylor. Rednecks. St. Martin's, 2024.

On to the World Series!

26 September 2026: After a rough night, I felt well enough today to join my Wednesday night trivia friends for the semi-final round of this season's tournament. And darn it if we didn't come in second again and qualify for the World Series in two weeks. 

So much fun. Playing with them is the unqualified thing that has made me happy lately.

Head cold...

25 September 2026: Well, I didn't factor a head cold into my weekend plans, but here it is. Ugh. So much to do. Not just work, but also some fun stuff that I was/am looking forward to. 

Decided to skip the volleyball game (the first I would have caught this season) because I am sure I am contagious (and I feel lousy). 

I've been trying to grade the first annotated bibliography in my stack since about 4:00. It's hard to focus. 

I am fine; just bummed. Here's hoping tomorrow is better.

A reunion for Jo...

24 September 2026: At the vet today for Jo and Veronica's annual visit, the tech asked me, "Can I ask you a weird question?" Since she was looking Jo, I was ready to hear, "How did she lose her eye?" But nope! 

"Did you get her from Briggs?"

Turns out, she was the adoption coordinator when I got Jo. I thought she looked familiar, but figured it was just from her working at the vet. 

She said she remembered my name and, of course, Jo (and remembered her name was Hunny). 

I mean, who could forget Jo? 

WISH Reception

23 September 2026: Today was a very long day in the middle of a very long week. 

But the Shepherd Writing Project got to celebrate our WISH grant tonight and it was pretty darn awesome. 

(Might update this post later when I see the pictures they took at the event.)

"Hold On"

22 September 2026: 

"It's the storm not you that's bound to blow away..."

Listened to The Secret Garden's original cast recording today while grading ENGL 101 essays. I've always been able to get a lot of work done (usually big writing projects) while listening to this album.

Found this track on my mind the rest of the day. Not a bad message for less-than-easy times.

Add that dinge...

21 September 2026: "They paid to add dinge to this letter!" --a student in my ENGL 101 class, sharing his observations of a charity mailing I gave them to use to practice rhetorical analysis. He was so tickled by the idea of making something look dirty to motivate folks to make a donation. 

(This was a fun activity--one that I got from one of our adjuncts and that I've been meaning to try for ages.)

Not quite two months...

20 September 2026: Yesterday, Hannah asked me how long Annie had been in WV. I was surprised that I struggled to come up with an answer. Everything from June on is such a blur. 

But when I had a chance to think about it, I see that it's just a bit under two months. Not a lot of time. And that made me feel better about how she's getting on with Jo and Veronica. 

That aside, she's just...happy? Like, contented and happy. Jo and Veronica are happy, too (most of the time). 

And that's enough for me.

Community Kick-Off

19 September 2026: Really happy with how our community "kick-off" for the Common Read went today--and love any excuse to hang out in the Shepherdstown Public Library.

Hannah and Mayor Gatz, with a proclamation!

Posing for the Library's  "Reading Looks Good on You" campaign.

Conferencing...

18 September 2026: Finished up a week full of conferences, first for ENGL 101 and then 301. I must be extra lucky this semester, because just about every student is doing what needs to be done and is on the right traack. A very rewarding week in that way. 

The what part of the library?

17 September 2026: 

Student in my ENGL 301 class, during our on-one-one conference today: "I got this book from the wet part of the library--"  

Me: "Wait--the what part of the library?"

And that's how I learned the library had a flood. 

(Apparently happened last week and mostly impacted carpets and not books. If students need books from the impacted sections, librarians do the fetching.)

4 weeks in a row...

16 September 2026: Second place again at trivia. Even without the winning, I've enjoyed it all so much. (And low-key bummed that I'll have to miss the next two weeks for work obligations...)