You might have noticed I’ve been a little light on the blog posts lately. I typically average 3 posts a week, but for several weeks I’ve only managed a paltry 2. That’s because I’m busy. Crazy busy. This is the busiest semester I’ve had since coming to China. And I’m not really sure why. Some of it has to do with Chinese class (which I have everyday) and some of it has to do with added responsibility because I’ve been here for so long.
But I really blame writing class. This semester I have 4 writing classes, for a grand total of 120 student. Do you have any idea how friggin’ long it takes to read 120 pieces of writing every week?! (Especially when a typical assignment is 3 pages long.) In fact my week now revolves around finishing these stupid writing books.
This is my desk Sunday night. I always make sure to clean it off and make sure everything is organized for the week.
And then this is my desk about 36 hours later. I keep the books on my desk so I can’t ignore them, and throughout the week I slowly make my way through the pile, 5 at a time, until my desk is empty again, usually sometime on Saturday.
These books are wearing me down. They are my own private boulder and I am Sisyphus forever reading them. They are even preventing me from doing my own reading (last month I managed to read a mere 4 books, about half my average). But there is a light at the end of the tunnel. This semester only has 6 weeks left, including the final, so the countdown has begun.
I love teaching (especially writing) but I’ll be glad to see this semester come to a close. I’m beginning to get the travel itch again, but maybe I just want to run away from these damn writing books!
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