If MLP: FiM has taught me anything, it's that sometimes a person's character strengths can turn out to be weaknesses (Applejack's sense of duty and "not askin' for help" leading her to work herself into a sleep deprived state) but that also weaknesses can sometimes become strengths, at least temporarily. (Rarity using whining and drama-queening to upset the Diamond Dogs to the point where they don't just let her go, they tell her to leave.)
Well, one of my weaknesses, one of the things I have excoriated myself for, served me well today.
As I said, standing there in my lab prep room: "Thank the good Lord that I'm a slob."
Yeah. I hadn't thrown out the soil leftovers from this past spring's Soils class (I asked the students to but many of them didn't). I had four bags that contained enough sievable soil that I was able to get what I needed for four lab groups (this is a small class). So that part is done and I just have minimal setting-up tomorrow morning. And feh to all those people who got all excited to get their soil analyzed but then never bothered to bring it. (If they do this afternoon, it will be too late - one part of the lab requires the soil to sit in a drying oven for at least 24 hours).
The bad thing is that the events of today are "training" me in two things:
1. "Don't ever expect anyone to do anything they say they will; therefore, don't delegate any important task." I have a really hard time asking for help ALREADY, partly because it seems so often when I do, that help never comes.
2. "Never throw away anything you could use again. And anyway, your prep room is out of sight, out of mind, so you don't need to clean it."
But boy darn am I glad I had that soil - saves me digging the wet stuff out of my backyard or trying to find a couple places on campus that differ in their soil association. (There's no WAY I'd have time to go out to one of our field sites to get soil.)
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