Trenchwork

Things are getting better, but I’ll admit to being behind the curve on a few things and am playing a bit of a game of catchup these days in an effort to get ahead.  My slow semester has just turned into a full one; they asked if I’d pick up a 50% position working with another 50%-er to set up a continuing education English program for teacher certification.  It seems there are a number of folks out there who’ve been teaching the language without being certified in it; when you’re short on teachers, schools tend to grab whatever resources are available.  But, recent legislation has changed that process and now a teacher must have at least minimal certification in a field in order to teach it.  That’s a good thing, but of course they want the thing done yesterday.  Literally.  When they realized they couldn’t do it in a couple of weeks, they decided to shoot for the fall semester.  That will work.  Ane and I are still figuring out what we’re doing, but it’s something we definitely can do.  However, that does mean that my own writing time has just gone out the window.

Academia’s publish or perish philosophy is a ticking time bomb for other folks than just me, but the difficulty is really figuring out how to juggle a full schedule with a writing one; they have a nasty tendency to not match.

On a purely positive note, this came in yesterday’s mail:

It’s a second swap package, and I love it.  Folk Vests is something I’ve had on my Amazon list for a while.  The patterns tend to be square, but I think most of them could be easily enough altered to give them a bit of a shape.  However, it’s the charts that are really really cool, and the book makes a perfect match for Folk Socks. And I find myself wanting the Bookworm Vest  . . .  How appropriate is that name??  Aside from the book, there’s a very very cool little blank book—which, mind you, DH thinks is the coolest thing since sliced bread because of the fabric covering and magnet clasp—another perfect postcard, some Milka chocolate (how many times do we see that huge purple cow on televised sports events??), and 3 impossibly soft skeins of Malabrigo laceweight yarn in a lovely earthy set of colors.   I’ve seen this yarn but never had the opportunity to use it, and it’s that roll-in-it-naked softness that you just absolutely can’t resist.  Now to find a perfect pattern . . . And by the way, who will it be for?  HA!  Foolish, foolish question.  Who do you think it’ll be for??

And yep, I do have some fiber pron for you later; the recipient just has to receive her package first.  As a hint:  I’ve been experimenting.