High Speed and a Slower Pace

Man, I'm just blogging my a** off this week.
Look at all this "content."
What is making all this productivity possible is our new cable modem and wireless router.
I now know (somewhat) what those words mean. We got all this new technology and our new laptop, so no more dial-up for the Gerard/Laughlin household. I no longer have to go to the library to get this done.

After nearly three weeks off, I can feel the pace of my life starting to slow to summer speed. June has felt very busy, and I'm not a big fan of busy. Being busy is overrated, and made popular by people who get a lot of stuff done. I'm glad there are people who get a lot done; some of my best friends are busy. That's just not how I want my summer to feel.

One way I can tell that I feel less stress is how I react to traffic and stupid drivers. During low-stress summer periods, I find myself being more patient, and tolerant of the morons with whom I have to share the road. Doesn't make them less moronic; I am just less bothered by them.

I really noticed this phenomenon on my first day back to school last August. Some clown at 45th and Airport wouldn't turn right EVEN THOUGH HE HAD THE GREEN ARROW! I found myself yelling "sailor quality" curse words at 8:30 AM, less than five minutes after shifting into "going to work" mode. "Wow, where has that been?" I thought to myself. The Summer of Jay 4 ended right then and there.

That first day back at school, without students, is usually a chance to show up a little late, catch up with fellow staff members, and ease back into the routine. Not this time. I cruised in to find out that the meeting had already started. No one had told me that the new Instructional Coaches were going to be there FIRST THING on THE FIRST day. It was like going from 0-60 on that roller coaster at Silver Dollar City. I'm sure these enthusiastic women (and one token guy) had some wonderful ideas for how to teach our students, but I was not mentally prepared to go like that on day one. These Instructional Coaches were supposed to offer ongoing support throughout the school year. We never saw them again. Maybe they'll be back again on our first day this year. If so, I hope I get a heads up that they are coming , and I really hope they aren't scheduled to arrive until the afternoon.

Peace,

Jay


P.S. I just saw that South Carolina's Republican Governor Mark Sanford admitted to an affair while he was "clearing his head," er, "doing some writing," er, "hiking the Appalachian Trail," er, in Argentina with his mistress. This comes in the wake of Republican Senator John Ensign from Nevada admitting that he, too, had an affair. Looks like they'll have to turn in their "Sanctimonious Defenders of Traditional Marriage" cards at the next GOP meeting. Both of these guys were on the list of possible presidential candidates for 2012. Now I think they are spending the weekend with John Edwards, at his "So You've Decided to Kill Your Political Future" seminar.
Will Mike Huckabee be the last Republican standing, next time around? Mitt? Hey, Newt hasn't had to admit an affair in several years. Maybe he's counting on second chances and short memories.