But Mousie, thou art no thy lane,In proving foresight may be vain:The best laid schemes o' mice an' menGang aft a-gley.An' lea'e us nought but grief an' painFor promised joy. -Robert Burns ("To a Mouse")Last Friday we discovered that there was a mouse in the house. Needless to say, this was a horrifying discovery; I…
After a semester of grading, more grading and endless office hours, only one more 8 a.m. class stands between me and freedom (or, as I refer to it in my mind, time to write my dissertation). An even more comforting thought is that this is probably the last time I'll ever teach this course--especially at…
I learned this, at least, by my experiment; that if one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours. -Henry David Thoreau (On Walden Pond)When people find out that my car of choice is a…
Being here in Finland, it's fairly tricky. I'm happy the temperature was above freezing today and that the snow is melting; the downside to this, however, is that there are now crazy puddles to navigate (my legs are short; I'm practically doing Olympic style leaps across the street). Also, without ever having studied the language…
I will be the gladdest thing Under the sun!I will touch a hundred flowers And not pick one.I will look at cliffs and clouds With quiet eyes,Watch the wind bow down the grass, And the grass rise.-Edna St. Vincent Millay ("Afternoon on a Hill")Some days you just want to do something different, go somewhere…
“Behavior is a mirror in which every one displays his own image.” -Johann Wolfgang Goethe Recently, I was thinking about therapy and how it's designed to teach you about yourself--to give you the "tools" for introspection and growth. If you go to therapy, you could talk about many things that bother you, from people to…
A Pang is more conspicuous in SpringIn contrast with the things that singNot Birds entirely -- but Minds --Minute Effulgencies and Winds --When what they sung for is undoneWho cares about a Blue Bird's Tune ---Emily DickinsonLately, I've been all about kumquats. It's my love of sour things; I just can't get enough. Plus, the…
Dining with Dostoevsky 