Bearshorty's musings

Last two days were rainy so we were pretty much stuck indoors. I only left for about 10 minutes today to go to the post office to drop off some letters (rent and next semester's contract). Good thing was that Bear had these two days off - yesterday was a holiday and he took today off because the floors were getting delivered to the new apartment and he was needed to carry them inside - he even got a hand cart at work. He, with some help from my Dad, ended up carrying most of the boxes anyway. Bear loves it - it was like a workout for him. Nice thing for me was that he was home in the early morning and in late afternoon. Tanya tends to play with him more when he is home, so I get free time to cook and just be a little. And it was just so nice being home all together, very low key.

Bear put away the tree and holiday lights yesterday and packed a whole box full of our games. I packed a box of books today. We are not moving until the end of February but we are starting to pack because there is just so much. I'm going to have many many boxes just of books. And once my semester starts in two weeks I will not have much time. We just need to get more boxes.

I did a lot of cooking even with the leftover holiday food. Yesterday, I made kotlety (fried meatball type) from beef and baked yams yesterday. And today I'm making baked ziti and split pea soup with beef. The apartment smells wonderful right now.

Over the last two days I also backed up 2016 blog to a Word document (I crosspost to Dreamwidth and LJ, but I want a copy that is not on the internet). And I watched 2 TV shows and read a book. So fairly good two days.

For a long time I wanted to read Christopher Isherwood's A Single Man . I loved the movie, although the movie mislead me a little bit on the intent of the main character, which colored this read a bit. And I had the book on Amazon Wish List for a while. Finally, I actually ordered it. But for a year Amazon couldn't find a copy for me. I cancelled that order. Last year I discovered that the Brooklyn Public Library now had it as a ebook. I put it on my library wish list. And last week I put the book on hold, thinking it might take a while. But on January 1st I got a notice that I can now borrow it. I did and read it in less than 48 hours. It was not a long book but it was also compelling. I didn't want to put it down. I forgot how beautifully Isherwood writes. His prose is just delicious. And, of course, since I teach in a college, I found the whole section of George teaching his English class just perfection. Isherwood really captures perfectly the class dynamics and student mentality. That section was sublime - really funny and just right. I really want to have a copy of this book because, while I rarely reread, I already want to reread this one. I loved this book so much.

I also watched two TV shows: Sherlock S4E1 and the latest Doctor Who Christmas special, which my Dad got for me.

( Sherlock S4E1: The Six Thatchers )

( Doctor Who 2016 Christmas Special )

Two weeks to catch up on.

From Tuesday, May 17th to Sunday, May 22nd we were in Long Island, visiting Bear's parents. Bear was at work for most of it - we really only saw him in the mornings - but it was still nice to actually see him and it was good to spend time with his family. Tanya loved it. Bear transferred the car seat to his Mom's car, so we could drive around. We also turned the car seat forward - it was time, she is getting tall.

It was still cool, spring weather - some jackets once in a while (compared to the heat wave this week). And we went to a lot of playgrounds. The regular playground, beach playground, local town playground by the bay. One afternoon we went to this local farm where kids can feed the animals through the fence. The animals were only allowed to eat celery or dark greens, which one could conveniently buy at the farm. Tanya loved feeding the cow and the sheep, was not afraid at all. She also loved spending time with her Aunt Carrie, Bear's sister. Bear doesn't have the best relationship with her, mostly because she keeps causing trouble and worries their parents greatly, but she is very good with Tanya and Tanya enjoyed the attention. At one point she wanted me "away" and she was busy playing with Carrie's spices and her food cabinet, so I used the time to go upstairs to use the bathroom in peace and quiet - a rarity. But, of course, "away" means "go sit over there but not out of eyesight" in toddler so Tanya, after five minutes, realized I wasn't there, went to climb the stairs and then cried at the bathroom door when I couldn't let her in.

When I did have my own time, during naptime (except one day where she skipped a nap) and bedtime, I borrowed Bear's Kindle Fire where I uploaded Season 9 of "Doctor Who" that my Dad got for me. And, I watched the whole season. The season was mostly two parters, so it worked out well with about two episodes per day. I'm going to do a separate reaction post, but overall I enjoyed the season for the most part, except for the stupid 'documentary' sleep episode , which I found terrible. Loved the Christmas special to pieces. And Episode 11 was pretty amazing - just the Doctor, no other actors, sustaining my interest really well.

I didn't really have a lot of time to read though. It's strange. I like "Jonathan Strange" when I read it, a lot, but when I'm not reading it my fingers are not itching for it. It's not the book I don't want to put down. At least not yet.

The book I don't want to put down is the book I got as a present last week. On Saturday, May 21st, for our last dinner in Long Island, with Bear home too, his parents had a sort of early birthday celebration for Bear and I. They usually celebrate both our birthdays on Father's Day (mine is June 2 and Bear's is June 15. He was born on Father's Day) but this year they are going away and since we are going on vacation too, it would be a month before we would see them. So early birthday celebration. Mostly, Bear's Mom just wanted to give me my present early. She got me "Hamilton The Revolution" book - the libretto to Hamilton the Musical. This book was on my wish list but she didn't even see that. She read a review of it in a newspaper and got it for me. The book is really amazing. It focuses on the development of the show, the songs, the actors and all kinds of background insights both into Hamilton and into the theater world. I was amused in the beginning by all the Harry Potter references as well. Lin-Manuel Miranda is a fan, apparently. He is exactly my age, so there are a lot of references I get. I'm in awe of this book. And savoring it.

This week Tanya and I were home by ourselves, just the two of us. Bear had an extra long work week. He left on Monday afternoon and just got back this evening. My parents came to visit Monday and yesterday, and my Mom by herself on Wednesday, so I did get some company. And we hang out at the playground a lot, so I do get to have some adult conversations.

This week is a hot week. As usual, the weather went from cold spring to hot summer in a day. It was up to 87F today - 75F in the morning. I got my summer shirts out and my shorts. I do love my summer shirts. And since it is finally really warm, my Mom insisted on the next stop in Tanya's potty training. At home, she's been wearing panties, since she asks to go, only wearing diapers to nap and sleep. But we used to put a diaper to go outside. Well, we are now carrying a small potty to the playground, so Tanya got to run around in panties outside (there is a bathroom there, but it is a little gross and not that comfortable for a toddler to use). I time an hour and a half, and make her use it. She did ask today, so progress. And since it's summer, we just bring a change of clothes in case of accidents. It is a lot more hassle, but my Mom is right, it is time.

The other day, I picked Tanya up from her chair after dinner to carry her into the bedroom and she hugged me and then said "Tanya lyubit Mamu" or (Tanya loves Mama). Aw.

Next week will be baking week. I want to make a blueberry pie on Monday when Marianna and her family, and Yeva are coming over. And I decided on Boston Creme Cheesecake for my birthday. So lots of sweets.

30 Days of Me Meme
Day 12: Describe a typical day in your life

Depends if it is a work day or home day. And also if it is a weekend and Bear is home or if I'm at my parents' house for a few days. For simplicity's sake, I'll just briefly describe a work day and basic home day.

( Not very exciting read, just a warning. )

30 Days of Fanfic Meme
12 – Have you ever attempted an "adaptation" fic of a favorite book or movie but set in a different fandom?

No. I don't think I would want too. I liked the universes I write it; there are only a few crossovers I that I liked reading.

TV

So last night after my trying day I watched the premiere of The Muppets . That was pretty fun. AA joke slayed me. Then I saw that Netflix finally added the last Doctor Who Christmas special, yay, so I watched half of it before my laptop batteries gave out. I finished it this afternoon. And just now I checked BBC America website, and sure enough I watched the first episode of the new season of Doctor Who.

( Doctor Who: Last Christmas and S9E1 )

We got so many things done today – I feel very productive today.

In the working I used the new exercise bike while Bear worked out with the weights. I like it. Being on a bike doesn’t feel like I have to force myself so definitely a good purchase.

And with late breakfast, I watched the latest “Doctor Who” on YouTube.
( Doctor Who S7E1 )

So today, Bear and I had a long list of thing to do: we went to Ikea to return the wrong stools, and the shelves I decided not to use (we waited for about 50 minutes for a 2 minute job) and to get the proper stools; then after lunch we went to visit my grandparents and pick up a few things they stored for me for the last five years; we stopped by Home Depot to get one larger set of blinds and Bear picked up an aloe plant (I kill all plants, that is not for me); and finally we went food shopping since we had pretty much nothing in the fridge.

We cooked dinner of pasta and fried eggplant in breadcrumbs and then conquered to task of Thank You cards. The only thing left to do, though, is to go look for a sofa, which will be the task for next week.

When I first got to college, many, many years ago, there was a book fair and I picked up two large boxes of Penguin classics (their covers were a little cut off so people wouldn’t sell them). I loved that book collection – so many books and authors. When I moved back to my parents’ house five years ago, I boxed all them up and stored them in my grandparents’ closet. But now, so many years later, Kindle happened. And so many of those books are available for free. So it makes no sense to keep them – since they would take a lot of space. And as much as I would love to have a whole room just for books – I dream of having a library at home – I can’t afford too. So I was culling all the books today to see what I should keep. I don’t know what do to with the books I put back in the box. A book lover in me rebels at the idea of throwing out books and I can’t donate them to the library since the covers are partly cut off. I’m just really not sure.

I graded the remainder of Final Paper 3 this morning. Paper four will be for next week. Since the class did Peer Review I did not have much to do in class. I talked to some about their papers but mostly I just read my own stuff. This is rare for me, usually I do actual work, but it was their last day before Thanksgiving break (due to weird schedule next week) so they were fine with it.

I got home earlier since my parents had a concert to go to.

Eastenders singing Queen for Children in Need was a lot of fun. YouTube rocks sometimes. And now I got "Radio Ga Ga" stuck in my head and want to get a Queen album.
And I liked the Doctor Who Christmas trailer which premiered today too. They are doing “Lion, Witch and the Wardrobe” this year. Should be fun. Just the Doctor, no companions suits me just fine.

( Grimm S1E4 )

I went to sleep a little after midnight planning to get up at 6 and grade some more. And, of course, I couldn’t just fall asleep. I resigned myself to a sleepy day. I never look at the clock when I can’t sleep so that I won’t grow frustrated but still. And once I did fall asleep I woke up twice with nightmares. Not a fun night. At least the day wasn’t too bad even with the lack of sleep.

I did grade in the morning. Paper 1 is done and I get Paper 2 for one section today. Grading is never ending. I did have two students actually come to my office hours so that’s good. Next two weeks is midterm time which means all I have to do is write the midterm (and well, grade their paper 2) and I don’t have to prepare much for class itself.

After my afternoon office hours, I got a new ID card, went to the library to get a book for my history students. I knew that work wise my brain was done for the day.

I did get to read a National Geographic article on Amundsen today. This year is 100 years since the South Pole expeditions and it was a lot of fun to see old pictures and read about it. When I was a kid I used to love reading about explorers. Amundsen was very meticulous and a good planner, which is why he won that race but he also shot some of those dogs that traveled with him for food. A practical guy, there. Scott wasn’t really ready for the conditions. All the horses he took with him died

Last night I read the article on Brazilian women and the big drop in fertility in Brazil over the last 40 years based not on government initiative but on women themselves. Partly, this demographic changed was inspired by novellas (soap operas) which showed small families. I find that kind of demographic studies fascinating.

( Doctor Who S6E9 )

I got to Local College early to meet with student and read more for the lecture. Going to school early is more productive as I can do work in the office there. My house is not very conducive for work. It is my first time teaching the law class and I’m shaky on the Roman law section – I need to get better at it. The class is not in the groove yet. I’ll keep trying. My Global lecture is much better since I taught it before and I’m fairly comfortable. Still don’t have a lectern. It is annoying to put notes on the table.

Next time we will read Cicero and I want to show his death scene from “Rome” As I was watching it to remind myself about that scene, I want to rewatch this whole awesome show. I have both seasons.

Poor hockey team that crashed today in Russia.

“Sexism in Moffat’s Doctor Who” blog entry .

The thing with “Doctor Who” for me since Moffat took over – it bugs me. I don’t really look forward to it anymore. I still haven’t watched the last episode. There is no urgency. I love Moffat episodes when they were stand alones during RTD era. But I just don’t click with the fairy tale aspects of the last few seasons and I’m not really interested in Amy – in the last season it was all about getting married and in this one it is about a child. And that is all she does. And gets kidnapped. My favorite companion was Donna and even though she wanted to get married too, we meet her as a bride and we last see her as one, she was so clearly her own character who was a match for the Doctor and wouldn’t take anything lying down. And she did a lot of rescuing herself. I do love River (I sense a trend of liking older, more mature companions) but her life is all about the Doctor. So she only went to study archeology to see the Doctor again? That is sad.

I watched the “2Fast 2 Furious” movie today. Why didn’t I watch these movies before – such silly fun.

I went to sleep late again, I can’t seem to want to go to sleep earlier than 1 or 2 lately which is not good. And today, since we are in Yeva’s place and my parents usually go to sleep at 10pm, that will be a problem. Maybe, I’ll read Kindle with my night light.

Yeva actually woke me up after 8am when she called to make sure we remember to bring pillows and other things since she moved most of her stuff to her boyfriend’s this summer. I finished packing, added a pillow, took a shower, ate breakfast and then helped Papa put garbage bags over books. He is not worried about TV or anything breaking or flooding – he is just really worried about his books. I also took my big cross stitch paintings off the walls and put them face down on the floor in case the windows blow in or something. Basically, many precautions that I hope won’t come to anything.

We left about 10am and the sky was already gray and it was raining a bit. Got the keys from Yeva and settled in to her place. She just has antenna TV so it was basically news about Irene on all the time. I can’t believe some people actually think the hurricane is great for surfing. I’m just glad we have power today so I can use my computer. There is internet and I can watch Netflix too.

I did work this afternoon and figured out my syllabus for the writing classes. (Which involved read many many articles from the new textbook.) I’m going to start with Kristof and WuDunn’s “The Girl Effect” (which is an intro to one of the best non-fiction books I’ve read in the last few years), then go to Gladwell and his pretty erroneous thoughts on Twitter and revolution, then on the Sherry Turkle’a “Alone Together” and robots and sex and whether we lose authenticity is attaching ourselves to technology and forming connections with and through technology. (I have a feeling my students might like it.) The fourth reading will be Slater and the ethics of brain implants for physiological problems and the fifth reading will be the one I taught before: Lisa Belkin’s “Made to Order Savior” about the ethics of having a child to be a genetic match and donor for a sick older sibling. I will figure out the final exam reading at the end.

I also put together the first day writing sample, which is basically to see if the students can understand what they read. And the reading guide for the first reading. I’m set for next week.

In the evening I also caught up a bit on National Geographic and read the article on Cleopatra and the search for her tomb in the July issue.

One thing the hurricane Irene is preventing is me watching the new episode of Doctor Who. I did look at some spoilers, though. And I found that someone already made a hilarious YouTube video of Hitler rant about the latest Doctor Who episode “Let’s Kill Hitler.”