Saturday, Dec. 07, 2002
Riding the tilt-a-whirl, posted at 8:01 p.m.
Epiphany in Baltimore has moved to epiphanyinbaltimore.blogspot.com The less said about last night, the better. The only good thing is that none of my friends saw or even know about my horrible display in the bathroom and the surrounding hallway, as it's on a different floor of The Spy Club. I'm especially glad the hot Art teacher, who never hangs out with us but came out last night, didn't see. Oy.I re-counted my drinks last night, and did not have that many for a four-hour span. Perhaps I have become a lightweight. Imagine that: Alcohol affects you a bit more when you way 188lbs than when you weigh 300lbs.
Well, as Boston Betty would say, "We've all got to ride the tilt-a-whirl every now and then." I'm certainly in no mood to get on again any time soon. I haven't felt quite right all day.
***
The Lighting of the Monument didn't disappoint in ushering in the holiday season. It was colder than last year, and that combined with the fact that it was on a Friay night meant there were less families out. I did miss seeing the kids as much as last year. Last November, kids were hanging on Holden with his antlers all night, and one woman let me put her daughter on my shoulders to watch the event. No such luck this year - there were a few kids around, but not nearly as many as last year. But hearing the choir, listening to our mayor speak (he's a great speaker), and then the actual lighting and the fireworks gave me chills. The lighting of the monument will always be a symbol of the berth of my happiness here in this city, so I'll never miss it as long as I'm living here. It didn't strike me last night, but it's striking me right now (ouch! stop striking me!) that at the same time last year, I was there with just my dog and my roommate, having few if any other friends in the city. Last night, I was in a crowd of fourteen in our group, and many wouldn't have even attended if I hadn't sent out the e-mail to a bunch of them. I was the primary catalyst for the outing, having suggested it, and can count all of the people there as good to excellent friends. I've come a long way in a year, and should display my gratitude for my life here a bit more than I have been.
***
I spent all day today with Mikey, helping the American economy. We went to a flea market, where I bought myself a tape recorder. I heard this idea about a month ago that I am going to try next semester. As an English teacher, I spend an awful lot of time putting comments on students' essays, and often I feel like they don't spend the same amount of time to read them or apply them to their next piece of writing. Well, next semester I am not going to write comments; rather, I will require that they turn in a blank audio cassette with their major essay assignments (they can reuse it all semester). I will read their paper aloud into the tape recorder, give the essay a grade, then require that they go home and listen to my comments and record the comments themselves on their essay to turn back in. I think it will save me some time, as well as be better for their learning. So many kids don't understand that the single most important thing to do to their essay before they turn it in is to read it aloud. If they hear someone else reading it aloud and offering comments, I think it will help them realize this. Plus, if I require that they listen to the whole tape and mark my comments on their paper, I know that they will have listened and responded to what I said.
I hope it works. The only drawback is that I will not be able to grade essays in front of the TV or during a down moment in class. Not that I do that very often any way, but it will just limit where and when I can do grading if I have to be talking into a tape recorder.
I also bought some cheap Christmas decorations at the Dollar Tree, as I have a bunch of people coming over next Saturday for a house concert. I want it to look festive. I had some passing thoughts of getting a Christmas tree, but that just seems like such a weird thing to do when you live basically alone. I also think it would be pretty depressing to buy, set up, and decorate a Christmas tree all alone.
I need to send out the house concert update tonight. Erk. And clean, clean, clean. A prospective roommate is coming over tomorrow to look at the place.
While I wasn't looking, I hit 600 entries the other day. Wow.