Many many things today.

First of all: one of the chemists has a little sign on her door. The caption is "At least we both agree on Wednesdays." The sign shows diagrams (using, inexplicably, a cow as the character) the differences in how the under-30 and over-30 crowd view the week. (Okay, so it's a big, bordering-on-stereotyping generalization here, but stay with me). The "under 30" cow starts out the week looking horrid and broken down - in fact, rather hungover. A 'case of the Mondays' as they say. That cow gradually perks up over the week, until on Friday, it looks happy and normal. The "over 30" cow is just the reverse - she is perky and happy on Monday, and gradually gets more and more beaten down as the week progresses.

I am definitely in the "over 30" group. I don't know if that means I take my work too seriously, or if I just don't have the resilience I once had, or what. (I will say I was *never* in the boat of being hungover and beaten down on a Monday, just that I usually never felt so exhausted as the end of the week approached in the past).

I spent the weekend fairly quietly - worked in the garden some, graded some, revamped the section on soil pH to include sodic and saline soils (which can lead to alkaline soils). I also knitted on various things, pulling out Zelda yet again while re-reading the chapter on saline and sodic soils, and continuning on after I found out "The Defiant Ones" (which I had never seen before) was on tv.

It was, in fact, a good tv-movie weekend. "The Defiant Ones" Sunday afternoon, and "Groundhog Day" Sunday evening. I turned the heel and did the gusset decreases on a simple sock while watching that. And you know, as much as I didn't like the existential angst of "Rushmore" or "Lost in Translation" and felt sad and, well, lost at the end of each of those movies, "Groundhog Day" makes me happy.

I think it's because, like all the movies I really like, it reinforces my fundamental worldview or it speaks to me. I think it's really a deeply spiritual movie, it shows the human condition and what can be made of it. We all feel trapped sometimes - or at least, I know I do - in a situation that seems to repeat itself and repeat itself. (And I think others must feel that way, or else you wouldn't hear the acronym 'S.S., D.D.'). And there is any number of things you can do with that existential despair - you can be selfish and mean and snark at anyone and everyone around you who seems to be happy. You can engage in solely animal-desire-satiating behaviors, eating and drinking and everything else, to try to make yourself forget that you're trapped. Or you can try to destroy yourself, blot it all out. Or, you can reach out to others, try to make others' pain a little less. See beyond yourself, be kind, recognize that the people around you, as annoying as they can be, are still human and still have hopes and fears and dreams. And maybe, by going from a self-centered jerk to someone who at least part of the time cares about and helps others, you get to break out of the cycle and have it be tomorrow.

I don't know, but that's what the movie says to me.

I need to watch more movies. I think one of the things that was really restful for me this weekend was having a couple good movies to watch and to knit to. I should buy myself a dvd player sometime...

I also got a couple of those slaps upside the head that sometimes God or the Universe or whatever you want to call it deals to you sometimes when you need them. First of all - the sermon in church Sunday, on the "Road to Emmaus" episode: the upshot was basically that life will not be easy, but it can be joyous. And that in times of great difficulty, when you're focusing on what problems you have, that may be when God comes into your life, and you're too sunk in your worries to recognize it, and you realize it at some later date. But basically, the idea that life isn't going to be a crystal stair, and it's that way for everyone, and yet - there's joy there too. I'm not stating it very well but I remember sitting in the pew going "okay, okay, I GET IT."

Also, ran into one of my former non-majors-class students at the local Wal-Mart (lots of the students work there). He asked me if I was teaching a particular majors class (which means he's become a bio major, good for him. He was a good student in a generally good class). I told him no, but there was a chance I'd be teaching it in another year. He said "Well, if you wind up teaching it, I'll be in your section." I presume that's because he liked my style of teaching and not solely because he thought I was an easy grader. So, okay, maybe I don't suck at teaching.

I also decided to do the pastels quilt next. Haven't done anything on it besides wash up the fabrics and realize that I need 40 dozen 4 1/2 by 4 1/2 inch squares, so hunted in my stash for a bunch more coordinating fabrics. Well, okay, they don't all coordinate PERFECTLY but I've decided not to buy any other fabrics (other than for the backing) for this quilt. I did find enough that look decent together, and it's probably good to have a few darker fabrics mixed in with all the v. pale pastels.