I have been eating too much. I ate three hundred calories over my daily budget today, and last week I ate two packages of cookies in about three days. I’m slipping back into bad habits.

Yet even though my eating has been poor, my efficiency has been strong. I accomplished nearly all of my professional and personal goals today. I met my weekly Wednesday duties (posting Blackboard assignments, grading COM 4451 assignments, etc.), finished annotating Paul Schraders Transcendental Style in Film, reviewed my graduate student’s thesis proposal, and practiced the piano with CKT.

Yesterday’s sermon included this nugget: when it comes to giving, it is more important for us to give than for God to receive. Also, the more we love God, the less we love possessions.

After church a lady thanked me for playing the drums. I play the bass. I don’t know if I should be offended.

I went back to church Sunday afternoon for the Fall Festival, the most anxiety-inducing event of the year for me. In years past the festival was held in the fellowship hall, which was filled over capacity with loud unrestrained children dressed in unusual outfits. The mass of bodies made the temperature rise several degrees, and the odors were only slightly more pleasant than the cacophony of chaotic noise. Each year I’ve had to excuse myself into the parking lot to avoid having a panic attack. This year the festival was outside, which was better for me.

After the festival CKT and I stopped by my office for a second, then went out to eat to celebrate his return to health.

Today it was back to work. I accomplished a lot–more than I would have if I hadn’t been on Fall Break the week before. Sometimes we can be more productive after a couple days of rest. I should rest more frequently.

Each day for the past four days, something has happened that made me think, “I need to remember this. I’ll want to write about it later.” Then I made a decision each night to postpone writing. Tonight I decided to make time to write, and I cannot remember what those things were.

Here’s what I remember doing for the past few days. I voted. I ran a 5k, my twelfth in twelve months. I graded a lot of projects. I met with my graduate student a lot. I sat with CKT a lot, but not as much as I probably should have, or could have. I laid cable for the video feed for the funeral. I took up the cable for the video feed for the funeral. (There is something zen-like about laying and wrapping cable.)

I also started writing my presentation for a talk I’m giving in Baltimore in a couple weeks. I’m thinking about giving the presentation in verse.

Tomorrow, I will be sick with a stomach bug. I know because my stomach is feeling woozy, my head is beginning to ache, and I am starting to feel miserable all over. Plus, CKT is currently sick with a stomach bug. If mine runs its course the way CKT’s has, I will wake at 2:00 in the morning to throw up.

But that’s for tomorrow. Today I woke up as a healthy person, fully engaged among the living. I ran two miles, painted the railing, graded projects, worked with my graduate advisee, and began to take the crib apart. I also took CKT to the doctor as a bonus.

A beloved church member passed away unexpectedly early this morning, around the time CKT woke up to throw up. The church called me this afternoon to ask if I would set up a video feed to handle the inevitable overflow seating for his funeral. I hope that I will be well enough to set it up for them.

AMKT went to the grocery store to get sick supplies–Sprite, crackers, etc. She asked me if I wanted anything. I asked for Chips Ahoy! cookies. She bought two packages. I ate about ten cookies tonight. If I’m going to throw all of my food in the next twelve hours, I’m going to eat me some cookies, dammit!

My plan today was to pressure wash the porch. I bought gas and detergent, and poured both into the washer. The washer didn’t like them, and refused to pump water at a high-enough volume to be usable. So I am rethinking the Great Porch Paint project. If I cannot get the porch washed, I should not paint it. I don’t want to spend a lot of money on the project now. So, I’m going to save my money and buy a pressure washer in the spring, then wash and paint the porch in March. In the meantime, I’ll use the money I’ve saved up already to get gas logs installed in the fireplace. I’ll also paint the new staircase railing tomorrow.

I ate lunch at Alex’s House with Meg Lacy, our new minister. We discussed whether women can be Baptist ministers. I think she’s for it. I am, too.

CKT said he had a bad day at school. When he got home he got into a little spat with EJT. I think CKT has been jealous of how much time EJT spends with Addison. So after dinner, CKT and I played miniature golf together. I shot a three-over-par, and scored some nice quality time.

This morning AMKT completed a half marathon in under 2.5 hours. I got to watch her cross the finish line with her friend Colleen. It was a little discouraging to know AMKT accomplished something greater by 9:30 than I would all day. But I’m proud that I get to be her husband.

I took AMKT and the kids out for a celebratory lunch, then worked a little while AMKT napped. In the late afternoon I began pressure washing the porch in preparation for this week’s Great Porch Painting, but the washer ran out of gas.

I took CKT out to dinner at Which Wich, then took him to church where he practiced the piano for about twenty minutes. Then I cam home, graded projects, posted midterm grades, and read.

It is almost midnight as I type this post. I have not been awake this late in a long time. The last time I remember being awake after midnight was when I was finishing my dissertation seven years ago. I am awake tonight because I was determined to make progress toward my grading today, and because I have been waiting for a couple projects to post on YouTube.

I woke late this morning, and gathered the family together for a trip to Tanglewood Park. We took CKT’s bike and EJT’s tricycle for them to ride on the trail while I ran about two miles. Then we ate lunch, and collected AMKT’s race bib for her half marathon tomorrow.

I borrowed a pressure washer from a colleague this afternoon, and I intend to pressure wash my porch Sunday or Monday, depending on how much work I can get done Sunday afternoon.

I went to campus to work a little, but I was locked out of my email and Blackboard accounts. The HelpDesk was closed, so I wasn’t sure if I would be able to access any of my online materials before midterm grades were due. I sent emails from my gmail account to a couple folks in IT in hopes that they 1) would check their email before Monday, and 2) would be able to unlock my account. While I waited, I posted a note on Facebook about the flap over the Houston subpoenas.

AMKT and CKT went to Winston-Salem tonight to have dinner with one of AMKT’s friends who came down from Kentucky to run the half marathon. EJT and I shared dinner, then went to Krispy Kreme for a treat.

During a break in my grading I checked Facebook. A reader asked me to give a citation for a claim I made in my post about the Houston subpoenas. I had written that the petitions included fraudulent signatures. I’m not sure why I believed that, but in the process of looking for a citation for that point I discovered I was mistaken. I posted an acknowledgment of my mistake, and reiterated my broader point.

Yesterday I woke and ran. Then went back to bed. I didn’t lay back down to sleep, but to give my legs a rest. They haven’t hurt that bad after a run for months.

I also got my six-month dental cleaning and check up. The office plays the Magic 104 radio station, “playing the hits of the 80s, 90s and the 2000s.” I heard “Take My Breath Away” for the first time in probably twenty years. It doesn’t hold up over time.

After my classes I met with my graduate advisee for about twenty minutes, then took my family to the open house and book fair at CKT’s school. CKT bought Sideways Stories From Wayside School. Then we took the boys home, put them to bed, then I went back to campus to meet with my graduate advisee again for another hour.

This morning I slept in, took EJT to pre-school, led a class, attended a faculty meeting, then picked up EJT and Addison from pre-school. We blew bubbles, played with the iPad, and took naps.

Woke ready to run. Then AMKT told me it was raining. I did not wake ready to run in the rain.

Took EJT to school, then gave a midterm on campus. Later in the day I met with a student who told me students were on Yik Yak last night chatting about studying for the midterm. I didn’t know what Yik Yak was, and the student said it’s a place where students can post anonymous comments. My interest was piqued, and I thought about viewing the Yik Yak page to see what students were saying. Then I thought better about it. There’s a reason why I don’t log onto ratemyprofessors.com; it’s the same reason why I shouldn’t log onto Yik Yak. The less I investigate what students say about me online, the better I get at my job.

Had lunch with Joe Blosser. He asked if he was going to get mentioned on my blog today. I said I wasn’t sure.