This folder review was probably the least stressful one I ever did. Mostly because I only had four papers to finish grading this morning and I was done with more than an hour to spare. (In folder review, I bring all the work the student have done in the semester and the final exams to one of the program directors and we go over those who fail and then if there are any that I’m not sure of. Or if I feel I’m being either too nice or too harsh. After the first year when this process was a little nerve-wracking, I learned to trust my grading and folder review now is like getting a second opinion.) Two people failed and two people got As out of my two classes. The rest were mostly in C+/B range. While waiting to see my boss, I got some breakfast and watched the very silly and funny “Brothers and Sisters” Christmas episode that I missed last night.
In another first, all but four of my students actually showed up to my office hour later in the afternoon to pick up their folder. I do like this office hour – some are so excited to get that C+ or B. One girl was so surprised and happy that she got a “B” that she really made my day. I only had one guy who was sad for his grade and I felt bad for him – he can’t write as smartly as he argues in class.
Then I got on the train for my trip to Montauk – which took me six hours (the train rides were an hour and three hours but I had a two hour wait in Manhattan). I really didn’t want to hang out in Penn Station for two hours. Then it occurred to me that I was in Manhattan at Christmas time and that Macy’s was right there and I might as well go take some pictures. I do love the city at Christmas. I also stopped by Victoria Secret and bought myself a sparkly lipstick (I’m very spare with makeup, I’m not a girly girl in any way, but I do like my sparkly lipstick). The sales girl gave me the wrong one which I discovered after I paid for it so I spent extra time exchanging it. Then, I walked up to Lord & Taylors on 5th ave and 38str because I always love their Christmas window displays. This time it were rotating houses and other Christmas memories. Some ‘traditional’ Christmases involved women in the kitchen and other 1950s gender specific tasks that made me raise my eyebrows. They had better windows in previous years, still pretty.
( pictures of Manhattan at Christmas time )I got a sandwich to eat on the train and I then discovered a curious fact. In the morning, I picked up some bags of tea from our department holiday table so when I asked for a cup with just hot water at both Dunkin Donuts this morning and at Tim Hortons this evening it did bewilder the people there. And they did not charge me for the cup with hot water – they have no recourse for that kind of request. I thought they might charge something for the cup – but no. This is a very interesting fact to know.
I read the National Geographic article about Alaska’s Bristol Bay, which is a big salmon fishery. Now there is a controversial proposal to build a mine there since there is a big deposit of copper and gold there. Environmental concerns vs possibility of jobs and wealth. This will be an interesting debate to watch. With the way world’s fisheries are going we really can’t afford to lose any more big reserves due to mining ‘accidents’.
The three hour train ride from the city to Montauk actually passed very quickly because my laptop has awesome battery life. I finished writing my fic and then read a little.
Bear and I watched “Shrek Forever After” and we both really enjoyed it and we agreed that after the first one this was our favorite one. The alternative world is just dark and really creepy if you think about it and they really acknowledge all the trauma Fiona went through when she was locked up in that tower. To prove to Fiona that he knows her, Shrek lists as one of the reasons his knowledge that she sleeps with a candle on because she is afraid to wake up in the tower again. It is actually great for this movie to really explore that fairy tale trope and its creepiness. The story is about Shrek who is feeling run down by his daily life as husband and father and misses is bachelor life. And, of course, he needs to learn to appreciate what he has. I was actually thinking that it would have perfect to end the whole Shrek franchise on the moment when he disappears.
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