Some things better

I reconstituted part of the hat I had ripped back while invigilating an exam this morning. I think it will work on the size four needles, and the fabric will be nicer - softer and denser.

After the exam (and after helping a couple students with something), I went back to the post office. Good news. For one thing, there was no line - they seem less willing to do much in the way of help when there are 20 people stacked up. And also, the woman on duty was one of the normal full-time people that knows me well (so knows I'm neither a whiner nor a rip-off artist). I explained it to her and she furrowed her brow, and said, "Let me look." She, and another guy I know as a full time staffer looked - and he found the box.

It was filed in a  different spot. Apparently they place packages based on address, and whoever brought my package in had violated the filing system, and the guy yesterday wasn't willing to do more than the bare minimum to look. (I had even said, "Couldn't it be somewhere else?" and he shook his head). The lady griped good naturedly about how people violate the "simple" filing system and I laughed and said that it sometimes happens in my teaching lab (where I have the storage cabinets LABELED).

She apologized for my having to come back but I told her it was OK. Because I was glad to have actually gotten my package, and because I knew it wasn't HER fault. (And if she had been the one at the desk yesterday, I'd have had the package by then.)

So. The third of the things I mentioned I can do nothing about, inasmuch as I cannot control other people's behavior. (But it still rankles.)

And one good thing happened. One of my stats students came in with a bunch of questions and I wound up going over t-tests with her again. And she said, "Can I stay right here and work this problem on the homework so I can see if I'm doing it right?" And I said yes, and she did, and she got it right. And she high-fived me when she saw that she understood it.

I also had another student come in earlier, before the exam - she was from the non-majors class. She had some questions so I went over with them with her and helped her out. And at the end, she asked: "This is okay, right? It's okay for me to come in before the exam with questions?" And I kind of did the "baroo" face and said "Coming in and asking me is what you're supposed to do if you have questions. That's why I hold office hours." So I'm wondering if maybe some people in some departments (seeing as she is majoring in something other than biology) maybe give students the impression that they are Not To Come In And Ask. Which is unfortunate, and might explain partly why relatively few of my non-majors students come in for help, when some of them would clearly benefit from it. (Majors are a lot more likely to come in, because we do have pretty much an open-door policy in my department: if the faculty is in and not, you know, in the middle of pouring agar plates or something, they will immediately help any student who needs it.)


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I think I'm feeling the need to knit/sew/crochet on something that is simply fun and frivolous. Even though I "should" finish the baby hat, I think I'm going to start the My Little Dalahast tonight.