Did you check your bra today?

I ask women that (in my head, of course) multiple times a day.


A student comes to office hours in a thin, white top and dark bra.

A departmental secretary... um.... doesn't have enough coverage.  And it is cold.

A colleague sits at a meeting with her oxford shirt gaping in between buttons, revealing.....um....everything.


Why is it so hard to check the state of one's undergarments in the morning?

Reviewing friends

Apparently I have more friends than I thought.

'Cause get what just popped into my inbox?  A grant review request from an agency for a friend.  And not a conference buddy friend.  An actual, we-got-educated-together (not in that way, you sick bastard) friend.

I know, especially with the size of academia, that I would review a grant or paper for a friend eventually.

I just didn't think it would be this soon.

Or potentially have to be a negative review.

Finding friends

To be completely honest, I've been having a bit of a mid-tenure crisis this semester.  My attempts at seeking balance have crashed and burned.  I need some separation of work and life.

I know this is a common question, but my current state of affairs requires it:



How do you meet people outside of academia if church is not an option?



I know this brings me to a whole new level of pathetic, but why couldn't there be a friendmatch.com?  Or a matchmaking club for friendships?

Chicken vs. eggs

I've been in a documentary state of mind.

Last week, I only lasted six minutes into the bad science of Food Matters.

I immediately followed that with Babies, a French film with no narration.  I couldn't stop watching the infants as they cooed, gurgled, and pooped for the next 79 minutes.

Seriously.


Is this a sign that my biological clock is getting wound up?

Faculty Meeting Rule #4

If you are going to show up 15 minutes late to faculty meeting, please don't show up with a Starbucks coffee and sandwich in hand.    And then proceed to consume them.  In the front row.

Those of us who were on time mostly haven't had lunch either.  At least eat your food before showing up late.

Shifting weekend aspirations

What was I most looking forward to this weekend?  Seeing the bottom of the laundry bin and the top of my washer.

A domestic goddess I am not.

If you had told me ten -- hell, even five -- years ago that domestic duties would top my weekend brag list, I'm not sure if I would have laughed or cried.

But here I am today.

A professor that moonlights as a crappy housewife.  Hmm....I wonder what the next five years will bring?

School's out for summer!

It's been a rough semester for me.  Lots of school things.  Lots of unbloggable things.

But!

It is summer!

While some consider spring to be a time of renewal, I think summer is really where it's at.  Without classes or committee meetings to distract me, I can think about new teaching strategies and make significant research progress.  Spring cleaning?  Forget about it-- I've got too many piles of exams and lab reports.  Summer cleaning is more my style.

So let's kick off the summer right.  What are you hoping to get accomplished this summer?  Getting that paper out?  Planning a new course?  Making some moolah teaching summer school?   Finding some balance with a nice vacay or staycation?  Share your plans below (or link to your post).  I'll round 'em up later this week.