And now…back to our regularly scheduled programming

School started last week, and my students are blogging this semester. You know what that means! Back to a regular posting schedule. So let’s do this.

1. Since I am in what I’m going to call the hazing period at my new job, my earlier class starts at 7 a.m. on Monday/Wednesday and 7:30 a.m. on Tuesday/Thursday. This is…not ideal to say the last. I am a night owl, so acclimating to this new schedule is something that’s going to take some time. For now, I’m forcing myself to go to bed early, so I can figure out what will work. This has so far included getting up early on today (my day off) as well.

I’d say it’s going pretty well considering I went to bed too early so woke up an hour before my alarm went off, and I just woke up from a nap about 20 minutes ago. I am making this deep sacrifice because I was absolutely horrendous (okay, crabbier than I wanted to be) to my class on Wednesday because I was so exhausted, and I do not want to be that person. It’s a challenge.

2. Related to point one, I drank the Kool-Aid and bought myself a FitBit Charge 2 because I do not have a car and walk everywhere I go. As a result, I need to know just how much I’m walking each day. (Hint: it’s a lot. Approximately five miles, depending.)

There’s a ton of stuff you can track with the FitBit, but I’m just using it track my steps and my sleep. This relates to point one because it helped me figure out about how much I sleep each night, which helped me adjust what times I go to bed and wake up. (This morning was a week of tracking, so it suggested a new bedtime [which I already knew I needed because of waking up too early this morning] for my planned wakeup time [which is so early and obscene, I don’t want to talk about it].) Hopefully, this new bedtime will work, and I won’t have to adjust it again. We shall see!

3. The hardest part about my new job so far has been how differently they do drop/add. It was stressing me out a little bit, but I think I understand it better now and will handle it much better next semester.

Teaching has been going fine except that I am both underprepared and over prepped. That sounds like an oxymoron, but I promise it is not. Basically, I am using completely new books and one of the classes I’m teaching is brand new. Also, my classes are two hours instead of the hour and fifteen minutes that I’m used to. So I have a basic outline of what I want to do each day (typical), but because I was so scared about not being able to fill up the time, I have tried to cram too much into each session.

The bad news is that I am already behind on my syllabi (in both classes!). The good news is that it’s only by a day *and* that I should have it mostly sorted out by this week. I hope.

4. Since my last post, I did indeed finish Jane the Virgin, which I find to be perfection. I was pissed about [spoiler] for quite a while but settled in with the new stuff the show was doing and accepted it by the end. I am fully on board for season four and will be watching it in real time–or as real time as I can–once it starts. (Fun fact: I had to check to see if the show was renewed for a fourth season before I could watch the third season finale.)

I felt like the show took a turn from over the top telenovela to regular soap (which still has over the top ridiculousness but not quite as concentrated), but I’m guessing with the finale, they’re getting back to the ridiculousness. It’s still fun! But the kidnapping and psycho murderers and stalkers kind of tamped down a bit there. But I see the change coming.

One of my favorite bits of continuity is that Rogelio still has his scar from the stalker incident. Good job, makeup people!

5. I also watched One Day at a Time on Netflix, which is just delightful. Rita Moreno is a national treasure, and I love her character so much. (Fun fact: Lydia reminds me of my daughter.) And it has been renewed for another season, thank the TV gods.

Elena’s quinceañera outfit was PERFECTION.

7. Since I was looking for another fun/delightful show, I just started Younger, which is airing on Hulu. It’s fine so far except the main character is supposed to be 40, but her relationship to technology and the internet seems more like she’s in her 50s or 60s. Also, the whole thing about waxing in the first episode was again like a conversation I might have with my mother (late 50s when the show first started airing)–not someone who is four years older than me.

Pretty much during the whole first two episodes I was like, “How old do they think 40-year-olds are anyway?”

8. My reading has been…well, slow, is putting it kindly. Mostly nonexistent would be a better description. I finished two and abandoned two. (I’ll talk more about the abandoned ones in my #MustReadin2017 check in post.) Needless to say, I am way behind on my Goodreads challenge (11 books behind as a matter of fact.)

Royal Crush by Meg Cabot

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This book is super cute. I love the focus on kindness and empathy in this one, and that Olivia always, always tries to do the right thing. I also love that Cabot gets in a dig at Mia for being overdramatic. Grandmère is, of course, the absolute best. Also, who knew that Grandmére’s advice for fighting Nazis would be relevant in this here day and time?

One of the subplots involves Olivia’s friend trying to get her to take a shirtless picture of Prince Khalil, and I’m a little disappointed that Cabot didn’t press harder on why doing so without his permission is NOT OKAY. It’s there–just not as pointed as I would have liked it to be. But I guess that’s why we have parents and teachers and librarians.

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The Dark Prophecy by Rick Riordan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars, rounding up

Okay, I don’t know if I was in a mood while reading or it was the book, which is why I’m rounding up my rating. Basically, I could see the jokes, and I thought they were funny, but I didn’t laugh. It was bizarre. Also, I feel like it took me way too long to read this book. But, again, I don’t know if it’s just because I’m in a weird place re: reading or if the book wasn’t doing it for me.

Anyway, Riordan knows how to do crossovers. I keep hoping the Kanes will show up, but I know they don’t quite overlap with the Camp Halfblood/Camp Jupiter worlds. But it would be nice.

Leo is still my favorite.

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9. I also finished my listen through of the New Testament through Inspired By…The Bible Experience.

My final thoughts are that the Bible should end with Acts. I will also allow keeping in Revelation–as long as we skip everything else. Well, maybe James can stay. But everything from Paul and his followers just sent me into a rage blackout. Again I say, every terrible thing I learned in church comes from Paul, so…yeah.

8. I am feeling kind of slumpy re: reading, so I finally quit the book I was reading that may be interesting but I’m not willing to wait for it to get to that point any longer (again: will talk about in my update post later this week) and moved onto A Whole New World by Liz Braswell. I already feel better about my life.

I also plan to put the next Raven the Pirate Princess volume and the book Younger (that the TV show is based on) on hold at the library. Maybe even the next Ms. Marvel or Giant Days?

9. Fun fact: there is a library branch across the street from my job! I saw it when I was walking into work one day. Ah, convenience. I do love you.

10. I think I mentioned before that I couldn’t afford to renew my domain name, so have been biding my time until I could. WELL. Someone bought it in the meantime so now I can no longer be theenglishist[dot]com, so I need to come up with a new domain name. theoriginalenglishist? englishistprime? Basically, I’m taking suggestions so let me know if you have one.

11. Okay, I need to prep for my classes this week, so I do not get farther off schedule than I already am.  That is also partially why I woke up so early, don’t you know? So I should get on that.

Have a great week, everyone!

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