I was not going to do the teaching meme but two posts, one from Lumpenprofessoriat and one from WOC PhD, have moved me to speak. Lumpenprofessoriat addresses the question of “love.” I note that many professors say they are suffering for love (of their fields, or of teaching), and they seem to believe this is … More Why I Teach
Yesterday at sunset someone knocked on my door and it was a man selling shrimp he had caught out in the Gulf that morning for $3.25 a pound. I bought twelve pounds for $39, which if it really is twelve pounds is a decent deal. The bags had a lot of water in them, though, … More Mardi Gras
On January 10 Moody’s, in concert with the other main bond-rating firm, Standard and Poor’s, gave the United States its top AAA credit rating. The terrorist blackmail threat came in the form of a demand by Moody’s that the US government “reform” Social Security and Medicare: “In the very long term, the rating could come … More Word to Obama
Yesterday was Candlemas and I could hear the air grow warm and thick and fill with twangling sounds, as it does when the ice melts and we turn toward spring. I was tempted to write a short poem about it but I believe this is beyond my current powers. I have been thinking of hiring … More I Might Really Go to Law School!
I am having an excellent semester despite certain problems I can see brewing in one class. Part of the reason for this semester’s excellence, however, is that I am again teaching Spanish literature, which works like a charm. By Spanish literature I mean the great, unknown literature of Spain, a country in southern Europe. This … More Spanish Literature II
One winter I was a visiting professor in the Midwest, where the snow falls. Before leaving here I had fleece-lined boots sent from Canada to my new home. It was January and the sky both here and there had the bleak purity of early winter. Everyone saw my boots arrive because they were mailed to … More In Class
We have been in school for one week. All of my students are above average, all of my classes are interesting, Hell has not broken loose, and we may even be able to hire. For some reason there is time to prepare classes and to write and to have a life. I am pinching myself. … More Est-ce possible?
Read this, from How the University Works. Then read the whole site. People cannot support their families. But remember: capitalism and general exploitation really are good and rational. If you have suffered and not benefited from them it is only because you are not virtuous enough, and have not absorbed the correct spiritual principles. * … More Cheap Labor
Keep your eyes on the facts. All the other Democratic candidates are very conservative, to say the least. Axé.
I have an interesting life, although I claim I do not. These are fragments of e-mails from me sent in the past week or so: * I went fishing again and caught a black drum … the marshes are beautiful this time of year … we bought shrimp at a roadside stand for $3/pound … … More I Want Another Day Off
coldhearted scientist وداد 