December 14: Too Much Thunder, Perfect Storm, Close to My Heart

"Um, um, um.  Stop that thunder!  Plenty too much thunder up here.  What's the use of thunder?  Um, um, um.  We don't want thunder; we want rum, give us a glass of rum.  Um, um, um!"

Tashtego commenting on an approaching storm as he lashes up the main-top-sail yard.  (I have no idea what that means, but it seems like it would be difficult to do in the middle of a thunderstorm.)

I know that I've been gone for quite some time.  Four days of grading and teaching and writing and working.  I'm a little exhausted.  Still have a ton of grading to do.  Papers and final exams.  I'm almost at the end.  Tomorrow, a poetry reading in the afternoon.  Playing the pipe organ for Mass in the afternoon.  A graduation party for my niece, nephew, and my nephew's fiancee.  Then, in the evening, a benefit poetry reading that I organized for the local homeless shelter.  Six or seven of my good writer friends and some live music.  In between all of that, grading, grading, grading.  At the end, collapse.

I often wonder how this perfect storm of obligations always seems to happen at the end of a semester.  Everything coming together for one great weekend of celebration, poetry, and stress.  Don't get me wrong.  I'm not complaining.  I love giving poetry readings, and I love raising funds and collecting donations for a cause that's really close to my heart.  If I could cut out the grading, I'd be in really good shape right now.  Can't do that, however.

I have to ride this storm out.  My goal is to have all of my work done by Monday.  I'm not sure if that is realistic.  However, I find that I work better under deadlines.  For example, yesterday morning, I was struggling with the ending of my Christmas essay, and I had to record it for the local public radio station at four in the afternoon.  ( I also had to attend my son's Christmas program and register/assemble and scan records/enter charges for about 16 surgical patients.  Another perfect storm.)  I'll spare you the details, but I can say that I had an essay to record at 4 p.m.  I also recorded an interview about the benefit poetry reading while I was there.

So, you see, my faithful disciples.  I have not forgotten or abandoned my blogging duties.  They have simply taken a back seat for a while.  I have nothing profound to say this evening, aside from a little advice:  make sure, at the end of the semester, that you have plenty of gin in the liquor cabinet.

Saint Marty is thankful this evening for his loving and supportive family.  He wouldn't survive weeks like this without them.