Breakfast with some of my favs...

22 March 2025: After a really great breakfast at a Turkish restaurant, I left this small contigent of our students (who were headed to the Warhol Museum) and headed home. (The other three headed home with Tim and Kevin a few hours earlier.) It's great to be home, but it was a really lovely few days. Affirming in all the best ways.

Convention, Day 2

21 March 2025: One of those days that flew by but also feels very long. But what a fun one! College students are the best (esp. English majors, duh) and Tim is the best. 

Convention Time!

20 March 2025: Writing this from my hotel room in Pittsburgh after a great first day at the Sigma Tau Delta Convention. Our students are so terrific and spending time with them is such a joy.

Practice session...

5 March 2025: Today Tim and I got to hear four of our students practice their presentations for the Sigma Tau Delta Convention. It's such a pleasure to see them shine, even in a practice session. 

That's how you know...

16 December 2024: "'Hoe' is the antecendent."

That sentence, uttered by students explaining the lyrics of a song to me, is exactly how you know you are at a Sigma Tau Delta holiday party.

It was--for the first time since 2019--terrific to host them back here at the house. 

Founders Day 2024

18 October 2024:

I am really fond of this photo from an improtu decision by some Sigma Tau Delta students to march in the Founders Day parade. 

End-of-the-year celebration...

2 May 2024: What fun it was to welcome the Sigma Tau Delta students to my house for an end-of-the-semester celebration! First "big" gathering here since the pre-COVID days. 

Sigma Tau Delta Party

2 December 2022: Another Sigma Tau Delta Holiday Party is in the books. Once again, we did it on campus and I think it went really well. A small crowd, but a good one. And Hannah showed up, which meant Tim and I got to hang out with our BabyGirl. Just what I needed after a long week.

Pizza party...

16 September 2022: Ended a long week with a fun event--a little pizza party with Sigma Tau Delta welcoming our new majors. 

I am so tired, but this was really fun and a reminder that the students (and Tim) are the best parts of the job--the parts that never feel so much like "work."

And, I get TWO days in a row with no alarm. 

Today's math...

7 June 2022:

• 10: Hours on campus
• 4: Students advised; 3 virtually and 1 in person
• 500: The amount of money we need to find to cover the furniture Rachael and I want to put on the Knutti porch
• 908: Number of words I've managed to write (so far?) on my "Life in the Iron Mills" entry today. I am still behind where I want to be this week, but given the chaos since Sunday, I will happily take this.

Out at the Farm

30 October 2021: Some Sigma Tau Delta students and I helped out at the Tabler Farm Open House today. So much exciting potential out there!

Tree planting

9 October 2021: Busy Saturday! Planted some trees with the Sigma Tau Delta students at Tabler Farm, which is starting a sustainable food forest. Spent the rest of the day cleaning, grading, moving furniture (long story!), seeing SU volleyball win again, and attending another concert at Dow and Annette's. Tired but in a mostly good way.

Poetry Under the Stars

21 September 2021: I should know by now not to doubt the Sigma Tau Delta students when they plan an event. Tonight, their "Poetry Under the Stars" event went really well--good turnout, good participation. And while we couldn't see the stars (too cloudy), I was pretty darn proud. 

Virtual Convention

27 March 2021: Spent some time today attending the Sigma Tau Delta International Convention, including moderating the the session that four of our students put together. This event was supposed to be in Colorado, but that was, of course, pre-COVID. So, we settled for virtual. Even still, it was lovely to see undergraduates so eager to talk about literature with each other.

Next year is (God willing) Atlanta. Looking forward to it already. 

Add it to the list...

24 March 2021: Add to the list of things I never thought would be part of my job: posing with the mascot to raise money.

Dapper Zoom Boys...

4 December 2020: The annual Sigma Tau Delta holiday party had to go virtual this year, but Bing and Wes still got festive for Zoom. [BabyCat also lives here.]

We're back!

4 September 2020: First Sigma Tau Delta meeting of the semester. Even via Zoom, it was wonderful seeing these smiling faces, especially toward the end of a long and tough day.

Bow-tie Time...

6 December 2019: That time of year again--the Sigma Tau Delta Holiday Party. Break out the bow-ties for Bing and Wes!

Checking in with Sigma Tau Delta

29 October 2019: "No. I'll use my secret collection of knives to do it." --Linnea, one of my Sigma Tau Delta students, in response to me asking if she was going to use her suppressed rage to punch a hole through the plastic tub our group is using for a project. (The tub is part of their Shep O' Treat project...)

Take note, folks. These kids are intense.

Because everything has been so crazy-intense lately, I haven't been able to attend one of their weekly meetings in a month or so. I've been doing all my work with them through email or rushed conversations in office hours/in the hallway. So it was fun--and a bit of a relief--to get to check back in with them. Even if there are hidden knives involved...

Made The Journal...

25 October 2019: Our little chapter and its big award got some local coverage today. Nice to see this on a busy day in the midst of a rough few weeks (months? yikes.)