I have eight more days of elevated stress levels as I work through my end-of-year grading marathon. Students of course are emailing and calling to ask about grades. They don’t know that I have to choose between answering their questions about when things will be grading and actually doing the grading.
One day I will learn, I tell myself, not to have all of the big projects in every class due at the end of the semester. But when else are the biggest projects going to be complete? If the students are ready to turn in their biggest projects earlier in the semester, why do they need the class? So here it is. Once again I’m plowing my way through papers and projects and portfolios every which way I turn. Wasn’t that Dorothy’s line? Papers and projects and portfolios, oh my.
It is what it is. For the most part I’ve been proud of what my students have done this semester. Especially in Comp 2, I pushed them to try new things, and they came out the better for it. I only wish I had beginning of the school year energy to apply to end of the year grading. Alas.
I have to cut back on extras. I’ve taken on way too much. I keep saying that and saying it because I don’t know how to actually do it. I don’t know what parts to quit. Right now my strategy is to flake out on the extras that have become the most frustrating to me. I can’t keep going like that, though. I have to make some choices.
Today my friend said “You can’t ride two horses with one rear end.” Indeed. Just because I want to do everything doesn’t mean I can sit myself in more than one saddle at a time.
I like to have a lot going on because I don’t like to be bored. If I’m not mentally stimulated, I’m depressed. I bring it on myself. But excess mental energy or not, we all have our limits, and I have met mine. Eight more days. I promise I’ll start talking about something else at that point.
