Summer session, week 6: Holding summer

I spun out into rebellion last week and wound up taking a day off--even though I had gotten up early for a 3-mile run and done a 90-minute yoga class, I nonetheless tossed and sandwich, a water bottle, and a book into my backpack and struck out for a 5-mile hike through the forest. The weather was perfect--mid-70s, low humidity, delightfully cool breezes off the waterfalls and reservoirs. Here's the view from where I ate lunch:

I didn't open the book, nor did I get much work done upon my return, but I quite joyfully sat down the next day to edit a journal article and do a one-hour virtual writing date with a friend. Although I probably did less than I might have last week, that day off was definitely the right thing.

I've been thinking a lot about how I struggle, in the summer, between the desire to Do All The Things and the desire to Rest, Relax, and Enjoy. It's not really possible to do both, and I tend to err on the side of the former, but then I feel like summer is getting away from me and I become angry and resistant.

So my "prompt" is really just a thinly disguised request for advice and suggestions. How do you find ways to hold some of that summer feeling (whenever that appears calendrically for you)? Do you take regular days off? Ensure that you spend some time outdoors every day? Nap more often? Make time for pleasure reading? I confess that a part of me is tempted to take an entire summer off.... I actually thought about doing that this year, but then I got interested in my research, so here we are.

Last week's goals:

Daisy:

1) Finish up student project field work
2) Send student home with very clear directions and goals for the next month
3) Send out letters for association stuff – three different sets now!
4) Chat with co-authors about revisions for cool paper
5) Prepare for and do weird government interview thingy (my uni president told me to apply, not sure if it is a good thing or whether I’m the designated sacrificial goat…)

Dame Eleanor Hull:

Latin, Greek, Domestic, T-reading, Other Reading, all x4.
Work on daily plans for fall class.
File papers, move books, paint bathroom.
Find new doctor

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell:

Send call for papers to co-editor with a request to meet.
Follow two tracked citations to two articles on Prudence, making notes, and tracking citations further.
File the box (!!) of important documents found in the garage.

Good Enough Woman (carried over):

1. Clean out the medicine cabinet.

2. Clean out dresser drawers.

3. 2 20-minute creative writing brainstorming sessions.

4. Float like mist through daughter's movie night with her squad. (We are boarding the dog for the evening, which will help tremendously. We boarded him for the first time on Wed for my son's graduation, which meant my folks could come for dinner without us worrying about him knocking one of them over).

5. Eat some of the greens my friend brought from her garden.

heu mihi:

1. Full complement of exercise, including one run over 3 miles.
2. Sit x5, Latin x5
3. Read one essay for collection
4. Read and comment on writing buddy's essay
5. 5 hours on my work
6. Write 2 lectures for fall
7. Embark on next yard project (rerouting a downspout)

humming42:

1 Overdue poetry review
2 Road review
3 Submit revision for online course
4 Present at virtual conference
5 Work on two other book reviews
6 Write and post summer syllabi

Susan:

1. Read last book for prize
2. 1 x 2 hours on Famous Author
3. 2 hours planning research
4. Finish packing
5. Write checks in advance
6. Church stuff
7. Write instructions for my sister etc.
8. Have fun with friends, sister
9. Eat, sleep, exercise

Summer Session, Week 5: What time is it?

The question heu mihi posted about napping in Week 4 got me thinking about time. I fondly recall a conversation with my friend David when we were in graduate school--he was a TA and full time student, and I had a full time job and took one class a semester for six years. When I asked him if he listened to Morning Edition on NPR, David said, “Nah, I usually don’t stay up that late.”

For this week’s prompt, I’m interested to know if you think of yourself as an early bird or a night owl, or neither. Do you have a particular time of day when you most like to write or read or teach? Has that changed over time? Does it change with seasons? 

Feel welcome to skip the prompt and reflect on your goal past and future. I’ll be back to comment as the week moves forward.

Last week's goals:

Daisy

1) Cover as much ground as possible for student project field work

2) Help students with field data and sample collections

For extra “would be nice” goals, or options for terrible weather days:

3) Send out letters for association stuff

4) Start revisions for cool paper

Dame Eleanor Hull

Make the Albatross fly away.

Finish moving back into my study (move books, file papers, organize a bit).

At least two hours on class plans.

Scholarly reading x4, Latin x4, Greek x3, Domestic x2.

Walk daily, stretch x5.

Write letters.

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell

Put the goals in their appropriate places in my calendar.

Read two articles on Prudence, making notes, and tracking citations.

Draft a call for papers for the special issue.

Scan a box of pictures.

Good Enough Woman (carried over)

1. Clean out the medicine cabinet.

2. Clean out dresser drawers.

3. 2 20-minute creative writing brainstorming sessions.

4. Float like mist through daughter's movie night with her squad. (We are boarding the dog for the evening, which will help tremendously. We boarded him for the first time on Wed for my son's graduation, which meant my folks could come for dinner without us worrying about him knocking one of them over).

5. Eat some of the greens my friend brought from her garden.

heu mihi

1. Sit x 5, Latin x 5

2. 5 hours on My Project, including working through reader's comments on essay-in-progress

3. Read less short, less difficult book for next year's grad seminar

4. Prep two more fall lectures

5. Journal issue second proofs

6. Copyedit an essay for next journal issue

humming42 

1 Magic wand for overdue poetry review: I don’t know how else to get this done, other than some magical sprinkles that will get me to sit down and think it out

2 Road review: Working on it, but not getting around to finishing the book

3 Submit revision for online course: again, magic sprinkle but also a specific deadline (Friday) will help. 

4 Cross ten items off the list of things to do. Will help to have a goal, even if self-generated

Susan (carried over)

1. 2x 2 hours on Famous Author

2. Start reading for prize (assuming 20 books, get through at least 5)

3. Read article for review (it's an R & R I read for the first round, so should not be terrible I hope)

4. 2 more sections of program review

5. Have fun with my brother & his family when they come for the weekend

6. Exercise, sleep and read

7. Do fun things with friends

Summer Session, Week 4: Now with a title!

Hello! I hope that you're all having a delightful weekend and--if desirable--taking a break from all of your very active Doing.

For this week's prompt, I'll ask you a series of questions. You can answer all of them, some of them, one of them, or none of them. They don't mean anything, of course--I'm just trying to have fun with the prompting!

1. Have you given thought to any interesting animal species recently? If so: what animal, and why?

2. At what time of day is the light in your home most pleasing to you? At what time of year?

3. Do you nap regularly? For how long?

4. What did you have for lunch today (whatever "today" is for you)? Did you like it?

5. Who is most likely to interrupt you when you're working, and how do you feel about those interruptions?

6. What color do you most like wearing? What color (if any) do you dislike wearing? Why do we have preferences about what colors we wear, anyway?

7. What are you looking forward to in the coming week?

Last week's goals:

Dame Eleanor Hull:

Work on Albatross's intro & conclusion, send to reader.
Start work on Domestic chapter.
Read a friend's essay & comment.
Scholarly reading x4.
Latin & Greek each x4.
Grade things & change student's Incomplete to grade.
Move books back into my study.
Regular exercise & stretching.
Write letters, buy steamer and steam linen clothing.

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell (held over):

Set and breakdown June goals.
Finish peer review.
Read two articles on Prudence, making notes, and tracking citations.
Make appointments with two doctors.
Email co-editor.
Write and mail thank-yous and birthday cards.

Good Enough Woman:

1. Clean out the medicine cabinet.
2. Clean out dresser drawers.
3. 2 20-minute creative writing brainstorming sessions.
4. Float like mist through daughter's movie night with her squad. (We are boarding the dog for the evening, which will help tremendously. We boarded him for the first time on Wed for my son's graduation, which meant my folks could come for dinner without us worrying about him knocking one of them over).
5. Eat some of the greens my friend brought from her garden.

heu mihi:

1. 5 hours on My Project (reading/writing/note-taking)
2. Read and edit essays for first part of collection
3. Read painfully difficult (but short) book in anticipation of teaching it next spring
4. Prepare one new lecture for fall
5. Sit x5, Latin x5
6. Celebrate my birthday! Host son's birthday party! Host parental post-party visit! Too much celebration, frankly!
6a. Have private whatever-I-want time on the afternoon of my birthday, while the house is empty (start a fun new knitting pattern, maybe?)
7. Process journal article
8. Run stuff to thrift store for donation

humming42:

1 overdue poetry review
2 Road review
3 Novel review

Susan:

1. 2x 2 hours on Famous Author
2. Start reading for prize (assuming 20 books, get through at least 5)
3. Read article for review (it's an R & R I read for the first round, so should not be terrible I hope)
4. 2 more sections of program review
5. Have fun with my brother & his family when they come for the weekend
6. Exercise, sleep and read
7. Do fun things with friends

Summer session, Week 3: Go-to artwork

By now I hope we’re settling into a bit of a summer routine, or maybe finding that space between “I have all the time in the world” and “summer is slipping away!” On my list of things I hope to get to this summer are things I want to frame so I can hang them up in my still-needs-to-be-cleaned office. Thinking about this, I was reminded of the poster sales in the student union way back in my undergraduate days: I bought a Monet print and a theatrical poster from the film Reds.

One of my current to-be-framed prints is by the Spanish Surrealist Remedios Varo:

For this week’s prompt, I’d like to ask you to share a piece of art that you connect with because it inspires you, shocks you, welcomes you, or otherwise has some impact. Feel free to drop in a URL if fussing with copy and paste in Blogspot is too time consuming. Or, skip the prompt and share how your week went, what you’re thinking about, and what you’re looking forward to this week. Last week’s goals follow below.

Daisy

1) Check on or get official permission to do off-site research

2) Plan analytical next steps for Project Garnet, prepare and mail samples

3) Do sample photography for Project Garnet, do detailed descriptions

4) Go through all field gear and check/replace/organize as needed (aka buy new pants because old ones don’t fit after this year!)

5) Sort out roles for new councilors on national organization

6) Do something fun with kid to celebrate school opening again!

Dame Eleanor Hull

Get Albatross complete enough to send to RL writing group and another more specialized reader.

Start work on Domestic chapter.

Read a friend's essay & comment.

Latin & Greek each x4.

Grade things & change student's Incomplete to grade.

Buy supplies & paint my study.

Regular exercise & stretching.

Campus run to pick up books.

Pay bills, write letters, iron linen clothing.

Elizabeth Anne Mitchell

Set and breakdown June goals.

Finish peer review.

Read two articles on Prudence, making notes, and tracking citations.

Make appointments with two doctors.

Email co-editor.

Write and mail thank-yous and birthday cards.

Good Enough Woman

1. Draft 500 words of Rambling essay.

2. 2 30-sessions on creative writing.

3. Do all the things for all the celebrations (my daughter's 16th b-day on June 8 and my son's HS graduation and my dad's 80th b-day on June 9th). Try to accept that preparations and celebrations will take most of my time.

heu mihi

1. Write 5 hours

2. Finish big book I stopped reading in January

3. Read 2 articles

4. Prep 1 article for issue 49.1

5. Sit x5, Latin x5

6. Finish first sleeve of cardigan and start the second

7. Two social things

humming42 

1 overdue World review

2 overdue poetry review

3 Road review

Susan

1. Get book orders in

2. 2 x 2 hours on Famous Author

3. 2 more (formulaic) sections of self study

4. Start reading when I get my assignments for book prize (In good news, I've learned that they divide the pile up, we read our group, and nominate up to 4 for everyone to read.)

5. Exercise, sleep, read

6. Do fun things with humans