End of Term

Earrings 

Academia: It was the last day of class today. Hooray! Amid the lawyering some of my students tried to present me with (as in "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I don't deserve this grade because..."), I had one very bright moment that reminded me why I put up with the lawyers.

I had to ask a low-level student to help translate for an even lower-level student in a personal situation. There was really no one else around to do it. We were chatting while waiting for parts of the situation to resolve, and in very broken English, he said that he felt like he learned more than English this semester. He said he learned to respect other cultures and points of view, and he learned that Americans do love their families, unlike what he heard at home. He learned that his culture is not the only one that matters. And he was so eager to learn more. "Here I learn experience, teacher," he said. I'm so glad I have this job.

Sartorial: In high school, I distinctly remember wearing pajamas to take my AP American History exam. I'm a long way from high school, but the end of school still makes me want to wear pajamas, or at least what feels like pajamas. Enter this dress and leggings. With cute flats, dressy enough for work, but they're stretchy and bendy and feel like pajamas. I'm lying on the couch at 9:45, still wearing them. I love my pencil skirts, but I peel those off as soon as I get home. Pajama-clothes are where it's at.