It was obviously a long weekend in Madison, and since Friday night, I’ve found myself debating whether or not to write a post about the storm system that spawned a series of tornadoes here in our backyard, killing 4 people just down the road in … [Read more...]

A few years ago at the college where I teach, there was a kind of message board attached to our intranet page that allowed students to post anonymously.  I no longer remember what it was called, but eventually, the college decided to shut it down. … [Read more...]

I suspect it is not just academics whose working lives are ruined by the persistence of pointless meetings. As a sociologist, I fully understand that sometimes the point of a meeting is more subtle than what’s stated on the printed agenda; sometimes … [Read more...]

For many of us in the academic world, today was the first day back to classes. The first day back on campus. Does this seem infinitely harder to do in the middle of winter than it did back in September, when you could convince yourself that summer … [Read more...]

It’s the new year, and time for reflection on the year past and the year to come (happy and healthy reflection, rather than the disassociative sort). Last year this time I was embarking on my happiness project. There were a couple of updates on my … [Read more...]

Springdale CemeteryToday is the first day of holiday break for my husband and I. Technically, it’s still finals week, but all the finals for my classes are take-home or oral finals that are already done. And technically, it’s the beginning of my … [Read more...]

Eco-MassageGreetings from Madison, where it’s raining and gloomy. But after a Friday and Saturday that were warm and sunny, I can’t complain too much. As I’ve already reported last week, I have sworn to buy all holiday gifts this year locally or to … [Read more...]

Oscar in the chairEarlier this year, the father of one of my friends passed away in a place he had only lived for about six months. The place he had lived happened to be just down the road from where I myself had grown up, and so the visitation was … [Read more...]

My fiddle, with my first checkAt the beginning of this summer, my husband and I came to the conclusion that the difference between the people who became that thing they wanted to be...a playwright, a musician, an artist, a writer...and us was the … [Read more...]

Hops display at Brew, Brew, Brew and BrewIt was a jam-packed weekend in Madison. Saturday was Soup, Stew, Chili and Brew on Main St. This event involves many local organizations fixing up big crock pots full of various soups, stews and chili’s and … [Read more...]