Summer Vacation Begins

Besides the fact that I have 60-some reserach essays to grade, I consider today my first day of summer break. This is because I went to the library and instead of just picking up my held books, I purused multiple shelves. (Yes, I am using purused in the correct sense, not the commonly misused way.) I found some gems - a collection of Amy Hempl stories was very exciting. Her writing being mostly one or two pages makes it feel very doable. I also found the new M. Ward and the old Elliot Smith, which isn't exactly summer-like music, but will supplement the other music I'm listening to this week, some very throwback R&B-girl-group tunes. Which is most definitely summer.

Why is it so hard to grade essays? I know my students worked hard on them, that many of them are wonderful, and that once I get just one done, the rest will fall like dominoes. But it's sitting down with the special grading pen (not red) and reading that first page that's the real work of this business. It's a lot like writing in that way. Once you start, it mostly begins to fall into place, but those first tentative key strokes are the worst.

Russ won a scholarship award today from his department, by unanimous decision of the faculty. It's called the "creativity award," which his professor Joan Woodward compared to the Macarthur Genius Grant, just without the $500,000 cash prize. I was so proud of him that I was first, sentimentally weepy and then, manically clappy and hooty. I probably would've peed myself if there had been a generous cash prize. I told Russ he should keep his award with him at all times and wave it at his classmates every time they disagree with him.