Still off campus...

 Yeah the, uh, incident (they sent a strict letter yesterday telling us what we could and could not say about it, which is funny, given it started a week ago now...) is still ongoing. I can't use my office computer, or so I've been told, and none of the other faculty were in when I drove by and checked midmorning so I assume we're still supposed to stay off campus.

I did write my syllabi here at home yesterday. It was a pain because at work I have access to files, and I have a double monitor set up. And this year, I'm changing them more than I usually do; in one class in particular I've had to restructure some things as a way of hopefully discouraging the temptation to use a LLM on assignments instead of doing them themselves. (I have no idea how likely that would be, some of the students - mostly research students - I've spoken to are pretty seriously opposed to use of things like Claude or ChatGPT for classwork, but I want to be sure it's as level a playing field for....well, let's just say people of different ethical beliefs on that. Anyway, if I am teaching certain SKILLS I want people to practice those skills and not outsource them.) I was pretty tired when I got done last afternoon (I have four classes in the fall.)

I also did set my home desk back up; it had kind of become a stuff-catcher and I needed space to elevate my laptop slightly (to make viewing the screen more ergonomic, but also to fit the outboard keyboard I now use in front of it. The outboard keyboard is a little larger and therefore less likely for me to make typos BUT ALSO a couple keys (3, e, d, and c) died on the laptop keyboard and I've just never been bothered to take it in to a repair place. I SUSPECT it's simply a loose connection given the fact that the keys are all in a diagonal rank, but honestly, if I work at the desk? The outboard keyboard is easier to use and probably better for my hands and wrists).

SO here it is. I'm trying not to give myself "big 2020" memories but yeah, this is where I worked from mid April (when I bought the desk and had it delivered, realizing that sitting to work in my recliner was wrecking my back) until our return to campus in the fall. It's not a bad set up though; I can see out a window and until late in the day when the sun is in the west, it's not too warm

 The wallpaper photo is one I took myself, very early one morning up on campus. 

Last  night I got the striped sock up to a point where I want to stop to do the heel flap:

 This morning I had my annual checkup. I'm always anxious about these (despite knowing my bloodwork results were good); when you're a heavy woman it's always fraught and I had bad doctor experiences in the past, but my current doctor is very low key and usually doesn't mention my weight (I am holding my own - not gaining any but not dropping an appreciable amount). She did ask me about vitamin D and suggested something I didn't know: I might want to try a supplement with an added low dose of vitamin K because there's some evidence that helps with absorption. She also suggested taking it at NIGHT when I mentioned I thought maybe it upset my stomach a little (and she did not pooh-pooh that - she said "yes, that can happen" about it upsetting stomach). 

Only other advice was to get an RSV vaccine which seems like solid advice, I will do that next week; she said she'd treated three adults for it already this summer.

Most of today was spent updating the Canvas pages with my syllabus and photos and deleting the volumes of stuff that is extraneous if you teach a fully face-to-face class (Canvas very much "privileges" online teaching, and that ever so slightly annoys me. I am a dedicated face-to-face teacher; I have some outside evidence that I am a good teacher face to face and I did NOT feel like I taught well online, though some of that could have been the upsets and weirdness of 2020. Still, it's not something I want to do if I don't need to, and I know some of my students have remarked THEY prefer face-to-face classes to online)

So I'm as ready as I can be for week after next. Next week, two days are meetings; I sincerely hope the Internet is back and usable so I can go in and accessibilify the couple of very-end-of-the-semester slide decks I have (disease ecology for ecology; resources and endangered species for EPL). If not, I can do it some time early in the semester. 

Tomorrow, if we're not back? I might dig out a few more tubs of yarn (yes I have a LOT of yarn) and sort it and put it in the rest of the space bags I have, and maybe be more "intentional" about setting aside things I don't think I'll ever use for donation somewhere or perhaps to swap with people. Though now I admit my inclination is to just donate it all if I can find a single place that will take it; a lot of it will be fingering-weight yarn and I'm not quite sure my fellow knitters (the ones for whom I have current addresses) would appreciate getting a big box of random sock yarn. Oh, I could be wrong, but I know a lot of us are in the mode of "holy cow how did I acquire so much?")

Though also I am finding yarn and going "oh, I want to start that project soon!" but I also know I need to finish a few things; of the bigger stuff the yellow vest and the giant color-shifting blanket are probably closest to done.

I think, though, for tonight I have earned a small treat, will be one of the "colossal loaded potatoes" from the local (VERY local! just a couple blocks from me) good barbecue place - it comes with cheese and sour cream and you can order whatever meat you want on it (the smoked chicken is good and I will probably do that) AND I might even indulge in the rare treat of a Coke or something similar.