In conclusion, the end. Or, how do you freakin' teach conclusions?

I admit it: I hate writing conclusions. Often I just stop or trail off and submit the essay without any conclusion at all, because I am so sick of the article and don't want to bother to figure out how to sum up a big complex argument. Sometimes I end with a really punchy closing line, journalism-editorial style, rather than anything that wraps up my argument and points out to further implications.

And if I hate writing conclusions, I think I hate teaching conclusions even more. I just went back through my folders and flashdrive files from the past couple years of teaching comp and can't find a single thing on conclusions --- no handouts, no powerpoints, no directions to students. I probably just didn't really bother teaching them at all.

Now, when you teach the first semester of comp, there is so much to cover, and the students (at least here) need so much repetition on what is a claim vs. what is a factual statement, or how to structure a paragraph, that I think it's ok to skip something like conclusions or have the students patch something together on their own. But I'm having huge troubles filling my second-semester comp class schedule.

First of all, I had to have a graded assignment back to them by "early grade reporting time," which means I really compressed a lot of the prep assignments. And in order to get the proposal draft on the early side of spring break (so I had time to grade grade grade), I compressed a lot of the writing process steps even further. Now it seems weird to go back and re-teach stuff that they pretty much got the first time around.

Second, I modeled my schedule off of the one schedule the adjunct comp coordinator was willing to pass along to me, which means my stuff came due much earlier in the semester than everyone else's. (meaning my fellow postdocs.) He has them all present their finished research papers at the end of the semester, but then also has them return to the anthology and present on readings for a week. That just seems like silly filler at this point.

My officemates and such just got their proposals and are spending the next few weeks going over how to turn the proposals into the longer research paper. I've already done that, and drafts are due next week, the research paper the week after that. So I have all of this week to "fill" as well as all of the last week of the semester. This week says we will go over APA and documentation styles, but I already did that when I ran out of stuff to go over last week.

So, help. Anybody got helpful guidelines on how to teach conclusions? Any suggestions for filling a week or so of MWF classes for students who have already got down the basics of research and writing? Someone suggested grammar exercises, but while each of them have a few (different) major grammar troubles, that seems like pure punishment on them this late in the semester.

Welcome new ammenities

We have a new ammenities center in our complex. I know it's petty of me, but it really got under my skin when the welcome to the ammenities center email went out. Not only is it misspelled there, but on the big billboard sign down by the dumpster and again on the amenities building itself. Sigh.

The nice thing, though, is that there is a washer dryer combo in there. Two of each, actually. So I had the fun of throwing stuff in the wash and then making a big pot of red beans. I'm going to make red beans and rice, with greens. Except maybe I'm going to have cornbread instead. This is all food I knew nothing about growing up. Actually, I still know nothing about it since I have only had the real versions once or twice and I am making vegetarian versions from my Deborah Madison cookbook.

Anyway, I got to throw laundry in the wash and then force myself to grade a few things (and still have more! argh!) while sitting on the new picnic bench and watching the clouds move in over the hills. Then I ate lunch and started cooking red beans, all the while my laundry was drying. This is nice. I usually use the laundromat over near school, so about 10 miles away, because it does not have a scary population and the washers and dryers work. This makes cleaning and whatnot while laundry-ing hard. Grading while laundry-ing is also hard because it is next door to my cute little rundown bar. And who grades while drinking and chatting with local weirdos who are playing darts? You'd miss all the entertainment.


Ok, update: laundry difficulties. One of the dryers never started, it seems like. Argh. I had to let the one load finish and then do the other in that first dryer, which kinda negates the time efficiency stuff. Is this the most boring post in the world? Well, it's not like the people I follow have been posting much in terms of exciting stuff lately. In fact, you could say there is a dearth of good blogging on the internet right now. What are people doing, their work??? Pffffft. Post something exciting, people.

Oh, the ammenities center. They have put in a half-court basketball and a teeny playground, and a small hole which they are calling a pool. It's nice, but not really anything I'll use. Inside the little building they built, which stinks of fresh paint and other newly-built stuff right now, is a sauna-type room that has been fixed up as a tanning bed room. Complete with a coin-operated timer. That is crazy. Even though I had to sign all sorts of permissions thingies to get my code, I can't imagine using an apartment tanning room complete with a locking door and coin-operated timer. That is just a recipe for disaster.

Round the corner from the scary sauna-tanning room is an alcove that has been stuffed with some free weights, a soloflex-type thing, and an elliptical. Too bad it doesn't have a bike or I might use it. I should probably use it anyway, get back into my exercising habits. In fact, I could even do a gym, tan, laundry ritual now. Heh. You'd think I was in Jersey.

Cat cat

My cat is sleeping next to me on the couch and snoring and snorting in his sleep.


All together now: awwwwwww!


Indulge my addiction --- is there anyway I can encourage a cat-pic-posting meme? International Cat Pic Day? El Dia De Los Gatos?

Om nom nom nom

Nibbles!


Can I stop chomping on freakin' job applications yet? 

I hope things turn out well. Like this picture. Hmm. Or not.

Go Floyd!

Go, go, go!

Go little Floyd! Go!  Go, you ugly bastard.

Get the hell out of here! I am sick of you. Don't come back until you find at least a strong R&R.

Watch out for those powerlines! Watch out for that ----- ooh. You're gonna want a band-aid on that.


You ok? Ok, then, go!

Backyard procrastination

We are having lovely weather these days. I thought that getting up, dressed, and taking my grading out back on the deck right away would be the secret to getting a lot of grading done today. You know, instead of going to the coffeeshop and getting distracted by peoplewatching. Or sitting on the couch and getting sucked into email and/or a nap right away. I was totally wrong.

Soooo much stuff is happening outside today! First of all, it is so beautiful and springlike that I have to stop grading to enjoy the feel of the air and to say, "ahhhh, what a beautiful day." Then there is all the bird song, which is crazy loud and melodic when you are used to city places that have nothing but mockingbirds. Also, I think the birds east of the Rockies are more "songbirds" while California/desert birds tend to just make a single piercing cry. Plus, there are two cardinals hanging out in the trees beyond my back deck and they are so bright red it is crazy!

Furthermore, no sooner was I out there than a little kitten --- or maybe adolescent cat --- came over to say "dude, how's it hangin'?"

He made a little chirruping noise and hopped right up on my table, rubbed his head against my hand and then hopped onto my lap. Not afraid at all. I didn't notice at first but he also left wet pawprints on the paper I was grading. Oops.

So of course I fed him, as you can see. And he scarfed that stuff up like it was candy and then licked the plate immaculately clean several times. My cats saw him through the window and they puffed up and meowed. He started growling and making moaning noises, which I thought was funny considering he seems to have no fear of humans. He hung out with me for quite a while before traipsing off to find another adventure. 

And the pest maintenance people came by at the same time, and said they have started to see him around, over by this part of the complex, and that pat of the complex. They said it was nice that I was feeding him, but they also mentioned that another woman over that way has been feeding him the past few days. Not sure I need to contribute to our area's abandoned cat problem, but I've become trained to feed cute cats when they come up and meow at me. No clue where that pattern came from, heh.

I still have 2 more big essays to grade to hit my quota for the day, a big stack of homeworks from another class, and finishing class prep for two out of three classes (showing a depressing documentary in the third). Ugh. It's still a beautiful day out ---- but maybe driving out to the coffeeshop is a smarter idea.

Green

I haven't procrastinated with shoes for a while. Nor have I bought anything lately.

I feel like I should add new and different and weird colors to my wardrobe, particularly my shoes. So on honor of St. Patrick's day or something, I am looking at green.

Unfortunately, the shoes I really really want are 268 dollars. See the end of this post.

Before we get there, though, Seychelles and Miz Mooz have some cute designs this season ---- although I do not necessarily like the green ones best. These make really interesting curves across the foot --- I quite like them --- but I think I would take the brown ones over the green. Hmm. Dunno.

These just look cheerful and cool. I don't think I could handle a wedge/platform combo like this, but I want other people to wear them to my work so I can look at them and feel cheerful.

These are totally different. I liked them better on the page than uploaded here. Not really my style, but an interesting possibility nonetheless.

Also interesting, wearable, and green --- and yet, I'm not really feelin' 'em.

I love this color. The satin is probably too bridal-shoe-y though. I don't really dress formally/expensively enough to rock a satin shoe. Could totally see it though peeping out under expensive black dress pants and paired with some sort of dressy gray and black blazer. Not really working with my all-cotton, all-20-dollar Target wardrobe though.

Sigh. Why must you be so expensive, darling shoes? I love you even though you are nubuck/suede. Oh shoes, come live with me and be my love, and we shall all new fashions prove.