All's Well in Exam World

When I landed in Detroit, I found a payphone and called my colleague who's proctoring my exam. Then, brainstorm! Why not email? (I paid for a few hours' internet access through a popular airport service back in Memphis.)

So I found a place with a plug and a draft beer, jumped online, and emailed him and my secretary. I'm happy to say, all is going just fine with the exam. Whew! I've allowed my students to choose to type their essay answers on their laptops if they choose, but none of their other profs have so allowed. Huh? But how much easier to grade! Oh well.

Of course, this allows my colleague to see how easy it is to proctor an exam where they use laptops, so maybe next semester, he'll let 'em too. (I'm my students' only prof who hasn't been teaching for nearly twenty years, if that tells you anything about technology comfort levels---not that I'm trying to stereo-type, but, well, come on.)

Don't worry---the school uses special software the students must download in order to take the exam on a laptop. The software locks away the rest of their hard drive, making it virtually impossible to access any other files; my exam is closed-book, after all.

I do hate that it's my first doctrinal exam to give, and I'm not even there! I am curious as can be, though, if any students finish early. Tick, tock. I know there are seventy-two very tired students in Memphis right now. Their stress, for this exam, should end in about twenty or thirty minutes. Bless their hearts. ;-)

Airports

First leg---check!

I'm here at the Detroit airport; it's really nice. It seems more like a shopping mall where planes happen to land. :-) Of course, I am in the international part. And anyone who's been at the DFW international terminal knows it's heads above the other terminals. Hmmmmm . . . are we just trying too hard to put on a shiny face for folks from overseas?

Still, of all the airports I've flown into, out of, or through, Tampa is still my favorite. It's amazingly open, and where I flew into, a Cinnabon was so near the gate, that when you deplane, you're greeted with the most amazing aroma of cinnamon buns. Mmmmmm. Least favorite? gotta be Midway in Chicago.

Gosh---that got me to thinking: what airports does that list include?

Hmmmm . . . .
First, let's go over the airports I don't remember---too young:

• Killeen (I think---Mom, where did we fly out of to see Dad? I know we flew a couple of times, although usually it was all about Trailways)
• Maui
• Seattle
• some in California I think

And now for the rest . . .

• DFW
• Houston Intercontinental
• Memphis
• College Station
• Austin
• Houston Hobby
• Love Field
• San Antonio
• Cancun
• Honolulu
• Kona
• Atlanta
• DC National (reagan)
• Fort Lauderdale
• Kansas City
• Tampa
• New Orleans (flew through there on southwest airlines; but I didn't see the city)
• Nairobi
• Detroit
• Frankfurt
• O'Hare
• Midway
• Heathrow
• Gatwick

I am certain I must have forgotten some. Oh well, it's not a major issue.

On the list in the next month: Amsterdam, Entebbe, Zanzibar, NYC (LaGuardia), and a yet-to-be determined locale. I think I'll be one trip shy of becoming "elite" as a frequent flyer, so I might just jet off for a night or two before new years. The cost of that trip will be worth it if I get to upgrade to first class on a couple of flights. :-)

Departure

Whew! It's been a very busy week. First, getting my exam finalized was much more time-consuming that I'd anticipated. I spent as much time writing it as my students likely spend studying for it; that surprised me. But I think it'll be good. It's very thorough and does a good job covering the broad topics we hit this semester. Of course, grading it when I return will be another very long chore. I just hope I can get it finished in a week.

Of course it's also taken time to get ready for the trip. As I type, I'm sitting at the Memphis airport, waiting on the flight for the first leg. It's just after 12:30 p.m., and it'll be 2:00 p.m. tomorrow (my time here) before I arrive--then another hour into Kampala. It'll be a long day!

From here, I'm off to Detroit, with a couple-hour layover before catching the almost eight-hour flight to Amsterdam. There, I'm meet up with my colleague from Seattle, and we fly the eight hours to Nairobi. Shortly after we land, we fly the short trip from Nairobi to Entebbe, Uganda. We have arranged a car to pick us up at the airport (after I buy a visa there) and take us into the capital city of Kampala---where we'll spend the next week!

I'm also really looking forward to a true vacation. Although I've traveled a lot lately, almost all of it has been work-related or to visit people. But finally, after the week in Uganda, it'll be pure vacation. Ahhh.......

I decided to go ahead and buy a book to read while away. I used to be an avid reader of fiction, but after law school, I essentially stopped. I still listen to a lot of books on CD when I have long drives, but I hadn't really bought many books. So my trip to the bookstore was a little interesting.

I really didn't want a romance sort of book. Puh-lease. The last thing I need to read about someone else falling in love with a falsely amazing man. ;-) And I wasn't in the mood for a mystery or murder type book. I like James Patterson and Stuart Woods, but that just wasn't my mood. And I likewise was not at all interested in a book about a twenty-something starting her career in New York. Good grief---how many such books are out there? The whole "devil wears prada" craze seems to have gotten out of hand.

I was going to get Alice Sebold's new book. But it's not in paperback yet, and I could not bring myself to taking a hard-cover to the beach.

But finally, I found the book: "Eat, Pray, Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert. This looked like a book I could really enjoy--and appreciate. Funny, though, I don't think it's fiction. It's about the author's year spent traveling and soul-searching.

I also picked up the a book by the guy who wrote High Fidelity and About a Boy--Nick Hornby. The on I got is A Long Way Down.

Alrighty. My flight's about to start boarding, and I'm going to head off. I'll post more over the next two weeks as I have internet. It's nice---leaving my cell phone at home and knowing some places will have nothing pulling at me.

:-)

Ho, Ho, Ho, to Africa I Go

'Twas the day after Thanksgiving . . . .

But the shopping to be done in this house is less for Christmas and more about malaria protection! Yep, the trip's back on. They did, of course, wait until the 11th hour to send the decision, which came to me after 8am this morning. (I still woke around 2am last night, having dreamed about the trip, but I quickly went back to sleep.) I had just about given up, then the email came, confirming the program would run as scheduled--with both me and my colleague teaching.

In the end, it's a good thing. I am so very excited about seeing Uganda and meeting the many attorneys we'll be training---who are from all over east Africa. We've also got several dinners scheduled with attorneys and law professors I met last time I was in Africa and folks Mimi (my colleageu0 met while she was there last spring. I'll admit, though, I'm especially excited about the beach and diving in the Indian Ocean.

It's been really hard, these last two weeks with everything being in limbo, but I am glad the trip's back on. Sure, it means my time's tight with all that I need to do over the next six weeks, but that's okay. What must get done will get done.

I spent some time this morning checking out some dive websites, and I sent inquiries about the dates I'll have open to dive. I do so hope the whale sharks have made it to the east cost by then! How amazing to dive and see them!

We have, though, asked to move our return up a couple of days. This way, I can have a full week to tend to grading before Christmas.

Thanksgiving was nice. I enjoyed a nap early in the day, then I took Howard out to the Bartlett dog park---that is, after we stopped by Starbucks. (I enjoyed a pumpkin-spiced latte, and Howard got a lid with a dollop of whipped cream on it. He thinks the Starbucks drive-through is just the greatest. :-) ) The two golden retrievers who were there last time we were there showed up again, and again, hatch followed Howard all around everywhere. Howard had qutie a fun time.

After the dog park, we got back home in time to pick up the Cowboys game a little into the first quarter. I got the turkey in the oven, which turned out delicious and prettier than any turkey I'd made to date. I picked out a turkey pouch of Sophie's food for her, and Howard actually got a little taste of everything in his dog dish last night---a little turkey, some dressing, a little sweet potato, and even some brussel sprouts. Yummy stuff.

Today I'm getting organized to figure out all that must be tended to over the next seven days. And this afternoon, I'll watch the Aggie game. But tomorrow, it's back to work. I have an exercise to finish writing for Africa, and I need to wrap up my exam.

So many things to do . . . . :-)

Turkey and Time

Happy Turkey Day!

What's up with "Time" in this blog's title? Well, there's still one MORE day to wait on Africa. Indeed, I awoke at 2:30 and again at 3:30 this morning, anxious to hear the "final" word. It finally came through, telling my colleague and me that Uganda could afford only one of us. The program was developed by my colleague and another professor, so I knew it wouldn't be me flying solo. I let everyone know that I'd be okay stepping out and allowing her to go.

Then she called this morning around 7:30. (She was about to board a plane in Seattle.) As I had suspected, she did not think only one person teaching the program was a good idea pedagogically. After all, the program is designed to give a lot of individual attention to the participants, and just one person cannot really do that. It would also be exhausting for that person to solely teach the entire week-long program. Added to that was her not exactly wanting to do it on her own--not to mention the plan of us vacationing for a week after the program; she wasn't thrilled with doing that on her own either.

So we discussed our options. As happy as I was with now having the next three weeks to take care of other things, I agreed to give Uganda one more day. And so she replied with an email that essentially says it's either both of us or neither of us. And we gave them until close of business Uganda time on Friday to get us the answer. For me, that's about 8am, so hopefully my mind will at least allow my body to sleep through the night.

But it is Thanksgiving, and I've got a turkey breast to get in the oven. (Howard's going to get a turkey dinner too!) Other than that, I'm going to enjoy a nap today and not doing too much of anything other than remembering to be thankful for the many opportunities I have and for good friends.

I hope all of you too enjoy this Thanksgiving Day!

One More Day

This morning, our contact in Africa asked for one more day---again---to make the final decision about our program. They have more participants, but they still need two more concrete confirmations to be sure they can cover the cost of hosting the program.

It's maddening, and I've lost sleep (my mind cannot help but wake my body in the middle of the night, expecting an emailed update), but I do know it would be a fabulous trip--even if I'm really too busy to go. And so yes, I've agreed to wait one more day to hear what is promised to be the final decision. It is promised to come some time mid-morning Kampala time, which would be around 2 am for me. Guess I can expect to wake again in the middle of the night tomorrow. :-)

Dogs Rule

At least, that's what they say at, yes, the doggie day care Howard now visits once a week.

Dogs Rule Daycare and School is a doggie day care located here in Midtown Memphis. You can even check 'em out yourself at dogsrulememphis "dot" com. (I've learned that putting links into your blog can lead to your blog being linked to on other sites; mine wound up on CNN! No thank you, not yet.)

I went to check the day care out over the summer, but there was a wait list, with about twenty names already on it. But being optimistic, and knowing eventually we'd get a call, I signed us up. And in late October, my phone finally rang.

But we weren't in yet! Howard had to have an interview. A few weeks ago, then, I took Howard down one morning, along with all of his vaccination records, and Howard got to meet the staff and some of the dogs who get free reign. He approached one dog, Molly, who apparently is always cranky. Molly gave a little "Grrrrrrrrr," and Howard promptly backed off. This told the staff that Howard was not aggressive and would unlikely start trouble. Well, no kidding---he's Howard! ;-)

The next week, Howard had his first all-day visit. The staff told me it was best for the first visit to be on a Monday, the slowest day, and it'd be best for Howard to get there early. So two weeks ago, we were there before 7:30. At that time, only a few dogs were already there in the small dog room, which was the ideal situation for introducing a new guy to the group. Howard went in, sniffed around, and promptly peed on the pole (where lots of other dogs had peed, and which was perfectly okay in this place). The staff said that was a great sign that Howard felt very comfortable; some dogs get there and shiver and shake and hold it for hours. No, not my Howard---Mr. Marker. (fortunately, never at home, and no, it's not led to any inappropriate marking.)

The dogs play all day until noon, when each dog is crated separately, given a treat, and has nap time for two hours. After that, it's back to group play! I picked Howard up around 4:30, and he looked happy as could be---to see me and to have had so much fun with his new doggie friends.

Indeed, he went to sleep early that night, and the next morning, Howard slept late---very late.

The next week, when we drove up to Dogs Rule, Howard got so excited when he recognized the place, and he had another great day. This morning when we pulled up, Howard knew exactly where we were, and he barely even looked back at me as he went into the small doggie play room; he was way too excited to see his friends.

Why go to doggie day care? It's great socialization for my pup, and it's a chance for Howard to play with other dogs without me doing the "keep the leashes untangled" gymnast dance. It also gives Howard something great to do, a new place to smell, other people to visit with---all things my doggie just loves. He does, after all, think everyone wants to be his best friend.

Sadly, Dogs Rule is daycare only, so Howard won't be able to stay overnight at Christmastime. My neighbors will be gone, so I needed a place. Although it's a bit of a drive, we've got a spot reserved already at PetsHotel. And of course, Howard had a couple of BizyBundle packages (special treats and group play sessions) scheduled as well as the last day set up as Doggie Day Kamp along with an exit bath. I won't be gone that long, so Sophie will stay home, happy not to be couped up.

Limbo

No, not the dance, limbo. (Although, it'd make me smile to hear, "Everybody, Limbo!" along with a catchy Caribbean beat.) My limbo is still in whether or not in ten days I fly half way around the world. I should know, though, by tomorrow.

Our contact in Uganda is optimistic. It all comes down to having enough participants to justify the cost of flying me and my colleague there and putting us up for a week. Some folks are already signed up--attorneys from Uganda, Tanzania, and even Rwanda. And there's a larger group of attorneys from Uganda's Ministry of Justice who want to attend our program, but the final approval and funding hasn't come through. (Yes, every time I read "Ministry of Justice," I have to force myself not to call it the "Ministry of Magic"---my HP friends understand.)

And so I wait for another day.

Today I've got more work to do on my final exam. Before all is done, I have calculated it will take me about a total of twenty to twenty-five hours to write this--primarily because I've chosen to include multiple choice questions, and those take forever to write--to write well, that is. One wrong word, and it's havoc and confusion for the students, in a bad ambiguous way. (A challenging question, on the other hand, that truly tests their knowledge of the law, is the actual goal.) But my students need exposure to these types of questions---the bar exam style.

I'm excited we've got a cold front coming in tomorrow---bringing Thanksgiving-like weather in time for Thursday. I've got a small turkey (bone-in breast with ribs) thawing, and I told Howard he'd even get a little Thanksgiving goodness. Friday I'll either work on packing, or if no reason to do so, maybe bring a little Christmas cheer down from the attic---after a special Friday noon gym class and while I watch the Aggies BTHO t.u. :-)

Yellow, Orange, and Red---Oh My!

Whether due to the early fall rains or whatever, the fall colors here are more beautiful than I've ever seen in person--ever. Sure, Fort Worth had a patch or two of color, but here, it's so much more. My crepe myrtles alone were so much more fabulous than I'd ever seen in North Texas. And the dogwoods---Wow! Such deep reds. Every day that I drive down any road, I'm amazed at the beauty of the colors.

I'm used to, if we were lucky enough to get fall color, seeing some yellow and maybe a couple of trees with a hint of more. But here---oh my! The brilliant oranges catch my breath each day. And the brightness of the yellows is unlike any I've ever seen. Add to that the incredible depth of the reds, and well, what a palette.

Of course, with the beauty, comes work. I've filled a couple of bags each of the last two weeks with leaves--and that's even with me using the mower to mulch those leaves on the yard. My neighbors say we've got another eight rakes' worth in store for us. At least it's a chance to get outside and enjoy. (But I did take down the phone number of the boys who stopped by today asking to rake my yard; these kids know how to make money. What is, by the way, the going rate on yard raking?)

I have taken a few photos, which I'll post soon. But the true beauty is hard to capture; I don't have a spot where I can snap a shot from up above. I only wish I could see Overton Park right now from high up. How gorgeous it must be.


Still no word on Africa. (I'm supposed to leave on the 30th, but in the last ten days, we've gotten no response on our inquiry as to confirmation on our tickets. I fear their justice dept did not get funding to cover the trip.) It's hard; I am completely ovewhelmed with what's got to be done otherwise in the next couple of months, but it's hard to tend to thinking I'm leaving the country for so long in less than two weeks. I know: the biggest challenge I have is just to breathe. Somehow everything else will work itself out.

With everything, I am trying to keep up a workout schedule at the gym. Lately, though, my hip has been much worse. How did, after all, those many pieces of broken glass get into my joint? ;-) And I cannot remember a day in the last few months that my back didn't send pains down my side or leg. On the up side, I've lived with chronic pain for ten years now, so it's just another day, right? It just hampers the gym motivation (even when I know that proper exercise actually helps me feel better---which more often than not, is what gets me there, after all.)

No News is, Well, No News

It's been two weeks, and so far, I've gotten no invitations to visit a campus. Out of the interviews, I promptly received one rejection letter. But I've heard not a peep from the others.

This means one of two things. First, there's a high likelihood that some schools simply never send the rejection letter. Yes, I agree: how rude. At most, a school interviewed probably forty-eight people in DC (two schools split their interview teams in half), and to send less than a mere forty-some-odd letters should be nothing. It's at a minimum common courtesy. (But then again, there's nothing common about this interview process.)

The other possibility is that I'm simply down on the list. Invitations to visit and participate in the on-campus interview have been extended to the top choices. This could lead to a few different paths. First, those folks might get and accept offers. Second, those folks might not present as great a package during the extended interview, leading teams to move on down the list (and maybe call me). Third, an offer is extended, but the candidate accepts what's a better offer to the candidate elsewhere, leading the team to extend the offer to someone else, or, if running out of those already invited to visit campus, maybe call me.

Regardless, it's a a very long shot. The more people I talk to, the more I hear stories of leading faculty members at places who had to do the DC thing two, three, or more times. The competition is intense, and a lot depends on finding a school looking for someone to teach things you teach. Besides, I'm in the company of about seven or eight hundred other people right now who are going through the process and don't have spots or potential spots. Perhaps for me, at least, this fall was merely a warm-up. ;-)

What happens from here? I focus on the end of the semester and my exam for my students; then focus on Africa (assuming that's still on; we haven't gotten confirmation on tickets, worrying me they don't have enough registered participants to pay for us to come over); then focus on NYC; and focus on the spring semester. In the middle of this, I improve the paper package I can present next fall by working hard to get an article out in the spring submission and another in the summer. I'll be busy.

Oh, a job? Well, the interview cycle for visiting gigs hits around February, so I'd do that, looking for another chapter for next year.

Yes, something still could work out. But in realistic terms, I'm prepared for Plan B. In other words, expect this adventure of mine on the road to a permanent spot to be extended. Perhaps I have more sights to see before I get to where I'm supposed to be. :-)

Zoo Pics

Here are my pics from the Memphis Zoo. It is a very nice zoo. A lot of people said it was much better than that in Fort Worth. Yes, some things are better. But still, Fort Worth does some things better too.

One thing Memphis does that I really like is daily "keeper chats." Each day, someone who's a keeper of certain animals comes out to the front of that exhibit and talks about the animals. I made it by for the tiger chat, and she even had a whole fish to give each tiger as a treat. (that's why these tigers are coming into the water--to get closer to the keeper who they knew was about to toss 'em each a fish.) We watched as the brother stole his sister's fish, but then she got another one.



I became a member of the zoo, allowing me and a guest to visit free for a year. It's nice because it's only a couple of minutes from my house, and there's a lot more to see that I didn't make it to a few weeks ago. It's also just a great way to "escape" for an afternoon, even in the middle of the city.

Gilbert's Web

A few weeks ago, I noticed a spider web on the far side of my front porch. My philosophy with outdoor webs--so long as it's not in my path, I leave it be. After all, the spider catches bugs, and usually the spider builds the web so as to trap bugs flying toward my porch light. This placement is ideal for catching bugs before they fly into my house!

So I left the web alone, allowing it to remain. And I named the spider Gilbert.

Gilbert's web first disappeared during a big storm we had a couple of weeks ago, but within two days, it was back. This has happened occasionally, but Gilbert works hard keeping his web in good shape. And it's one of those "pretty" webs too--the kind with the "wheel" look.

Last Wednesday, I got quite a treat: I got to watch Gilbert rebuild his web. now, I'm pushing forty, but I'd never seen a spider actually build this sort of web. It was quite amazing! And, yes, if you've figured your calendar correctly, indeed, it was Halloween! I had joked to a neighbor that I'd hired Gilbert to be my Halloween decoration, and gosh, I guess a bonus is due---a brand new web on Halloween!

A week ago, taking an afternoon off last Sunday after the very busy week and out-of-town trip, I finally made it to the zoo. As I was leaving the area called the Northwest Passage, I took the long way out, stopping to read about Chief Seattle. And as I left the area, I passed this rock. Quite an inscription, eh?

Boo!

Happy "National Men Make Dinner Day"!

(No, seriously---first Thursday in Nov IS National Men Make Dinner Day.)

Okay, so today doesn't receive as much press as yesterday--Halloween. So, Happy (belated) Halloween! (FYI: the pics here aren't of my pumpkins---just random pics I found.)

It was a great day. I took treats for my students, and they seemed to really appreciate it. (I also wore my "Boo!" pin, which I've worn every year since '95. One student even thanked me for wearing it. She had on a pumpkin shirt, but she said no one else in her classes--students or professors--did anything.) It's funny. My students are all over the age of 22, and I suspect the oldest is late thirties/early forties. But give 'em a couple of pieces of candy, and they love it. :-)

I came home actually at a decent time too last night. Howard and I went outside, leisurely walked a little, and the costumes started coming out. We visited with my neighbors to the north for a while, then the neighbors to the south came out. (It's the neighbors to the south (Cole & Michelle & daughter Morgan) who take such great care of Howard and Sophie when I leave town---correction, they take care of "Howie Mandel and Sophia Loren"---their names for the critters.)) Michelle had brought out her bowl of candy, and I went in and got mine, then Cole and Morgan headed off to Trick or Treat. (funny how we create verbs).

Michelle and I then hung out on my front porch---to the joy of several kids when they realized they got candy from TWO bowls when they came to my house. And yes, Howard had a great time visiting with sooo many new people! After a while, Chris, the neighbor to the north, came back and stayed at his house to hand out candy while Christina took their kids off to TorT. (hmmm---even funnier that trying to abbreviate "trick or treat" can turn into a "tort.") Chris was dressed in a skeleton costume with full face make-up. He sprawled across his front porch, and Michelle and I watched child after child cautiously approach, discuss among themselves "is that man real?" "Aw, yea, he's real." "No, that man isn't real. That's fake." And about that time, they'd be close enough for Chris to jump and scream, causing several children to flee, screaming, back down the sidewalk to the arms of laughing parents. Michelle and I cracked up every time. Of course, the kids then would laugh and go get their candy from Chris, often coming next to my house, sometimes still out of breath---one even clutching his heart.

Michelle and I had a great visit---the first time she and I have really gotten to talk. She's working on her PhD in nursing and is also waiting for info from an interview. After a while, Cole and Morgan returned. We stayed out a little longer before we all turned in.

It was a quiet night, but it was also a really great night.

I hope you too had a Happy Halloween! :-)