What??? Are you Sure?

I have been procrastinating all semester, more than usual. I have just come to the realization that there are 3 weeks left in this semester. 3! That's t-h-r-e-e. I have a 25 page paper due on December 11, that has to be presented and defended on December 4th that doesn't even have the scribbled outline started. I also have a 10 page research paper due on December 3rd, which I haven't even begun to explore, and a take home final that will be due December 12th. This is on top of all of the work that I have to grade for the courses that I am teaching this semester. Damnit, when did this semester slip away from me?

I have found the hardest thing to do this semester is to stay to my "assigned hours" and get the work done that is expected of me. Granted part of my distraction is the very nice, pretty, shinny new 50" LCD TV the hubby and I bought, but I really am just physically and mentally exhausted when I get home most evenings. Allowing me an hour or two an evening to cram in what is stored on my DVR is not a crime, but I can't seem to get everything done in the time frame that is set forth by the professors that I work with. It is not like I am in trouble, but it is like that disappointed look that parents give their children that cuts right through to your self esteem. This makes me hate my pretty new TV, just a little. One good thing is that most of the shows that I do watch have either, a) been cancelled, so I have less TV to watch, b) sucked so bad that I have given up on them, (yes that is you Heroes that I am talking about) or c) are not on currently. If only TV would keep sucking during the school year.

Election Hangover and More

I, like most of the nation was glued to the TV on Tuesday, waiting for the results of the election. Now for those of you that know me, I made it all the way through the President-Elect's speech without a nap. The husband even faded before I did. Now what goes without saying is that I was unable to get any work done whatsoever. I was so glued to CNN and Comedy Central that I could not grade the now over 100 papers/assignments from my students. I just couldn't pull myself away from the couch to sit at the kitchen table. I needed to know what was going on.

Now that this is over, it feels like a hangover. For those of you who are married, it feels like those first few days after your wedding. You have spent all of the mental and emotional time and effort, and now that it is over, what do you do with your time. Now most would think that I turned this time over to my research/homework/grading papers. You would be wrong. I ironed and did laundry. I know, it is sad, but it was the first thing that caught my attention when I got home from my office yesterday.

I did spend about 5 hours at the historical society on Tuesday, doing research for my cooperating professor. I am looking into how the school board of Milwaukee shifted in its make-up during the course of the 20th Century. I have been mostly hunting through the reports from the school board from 1906-08. It is very interesting to see the numbers that I have found in these books that will help my research for Girls' Tech. I have found that they were concerned about class size. The numbers from the 1906/7 school year speak for themselves:

Teacher to Student Ratios Based on Enrollment Numbers:

• Overall: 47.1
• High School: 28.5
• Grammar and Primary: 51.25
• Kindergarten: 66.77

Teacher to Student Ratios Based on the Average Attendance Numbers:

• Overall: 33.95
• High School: 23.0
• Grammar (Grades 5-8):37.81
• Primary: 45.21
• Kindergarten: 33.30

Could you even imagine a first grade classroom with 46 students? Now the only reason that the high school ratio is so low is that the law only mandated a child finish 8th grade or grammar school.

High School Sports

I have been trying to squeeze in as much time as I can find at our local historical society that has information on my school. I have a paper due at the end of November and I am focusing on the extracurricular activities that were available to the students from its inception in 1909 through WWII (a parameter set by my cooperating professor). I have found a number of interesting things about this school:

• The girls canceled their prom in 1943 and used the money to buy war bonds.


• The school had intramural basketball teams as early as 1927.


• By 1930 there were three intramural sports.


• By 1934 there was an athletic club that sponsored volleyball, basketball, baseball, tennis, swimming, and ping pong.

What is great about this, is that it was all prior to Title IX. Most people think that the only "sports" girls had open to them were cheerleading and majorette/drill team. There seems to be a decline in female sports at co-ed schools that is fueling my research.

On a lighter note, I found this comic amusing, and sadly so very true, based on the university that I am attached to. However I am grateful that we do not have a football team.

If Only the World Were Perfect...

I am procrastinating from working on grading portfolios, doing research for my prof, completing a proposal to teach a summer course in Ireland, and from doing my own reading and research. Couldn't I find an extra day of the week to help me take care of these things? I just need an extra 8 hours during the day where I could sneak off to the archives and research without anyone asking me for help. My evenings are open, but my days and weekends are so packed with stuff that I barely have time to remember to eat my lunch. On more occasions that I would like to remember I have had to throw out my lunch because I left it sit out all day and it thawed/spoiled. I just lose track of time so easily, and feel like I have not got done all that I needed to accomplish in that time frame. I know that I am hard on myself with my own expectations of what I can get done, but lately it seems that the time crunch is more acute. On top of this I have just been frustrated with some of my students.

Research...

I finally made it down to the county historical society's temporary location to begin going through the two boxes they have that are all about Girls' Trade and Tech. I spent most of the afternoon reading through the alumnae association's newsletters. This semester I have to deliver a 25 page paper on the school for a seminar course. I have decided to focus on the extra curricular activities that the girls were involved in throughout the 46 years that it was in operation. I have a some good leads on operettas, pageants, and a track team! I have just started digging, and hope to get back there before this coming Saturday.

Again, I have another PhD Comic attached that has really hit home this week. I keep trying to stay up to grade papers, prep for class, or read for my other course.

Proof

Since I am too busy slacking off from researching to write a full update, here is another comic to make you smile. I am not sure how I fit in here because I do own stocks, have a 401K and 403b from previous jobs, and I own a home. I even know what type of mortgage I have. Even so, it reminded me why I am glad to be where I am.