Wednesday, June 1, 2005

Summer Isn't What It Used to Be

What a strange summer this is turning out to be. A is in California, with his mother, visiting his family and attending Ivy’s graduation. I am here alone until Saturday. That isn’t the strange part, however. It’s that this is summer, and I have gotten stuck teaching two classes for five hours a day—a total of 25 hours a week, which is more time in front of students than I had to put in during the regular semester. What kind of summer vacation is this?
They are not difficult classes to teach—only five students (two from 8:00 to 10:00 and three from 1:00 to 4:00), but long. I find more than 90 minutes of one activity a strain, and there is a lot stuff to do in preparation for August with no time to take care of it. I know I’m lazy and a time waster, but at this point in my life I treasure my down time and I tend to stretch out those moments until they eat into what should be busy time. Like now, I would rather be writing a journal entry than grading papers.