Friday Five

1. Rowen is all better---except for the bald spot on her foreleg. The anesthesia took about 24 hours to wear off, but she's back to her normal, crazy self.

2. I'm off to San Francisco next week. I'm presenting a paper at an anthropology conference. I'm completely freaked because I think this may be when the truth finally comes out: I'm a complete fraud and no nothing about anthropology, voluntourism, or Malawi.

I read a draft of the paper at a graduate student workshop last week, but the attendees were all friends, and as great as they are, they are all big liars. I wrote the first draft of the paper in the wee hours, after finishing three proposals that were all due the same week. I was completely incoherent both when writing and when presenting the draft.

At least I still have a week to try to fix it!

3. I can't believe that we're in the middle of November already. I made it through my "hell week": three grant proposals and a conference paper draft. But I'm losing steam, and I still have four weeks of classes to go and two papers to write. One of the papers is in Swahili, and the other is a major literature review on the political economy of development.

4. Today, I got a big box of yarn to make things for my sister's baby. So, of course, I want to dive right in and ignore the book I have to read and write a response paper on, the stack of exams I have to grade, the Swahili essay I have to write, and the tower of books on political economy of development that I was supposed to start reviewing about a month ago.

5. I also went on a small book binge right after finishing my grant proposals, including buying the new Toni Morrison.* And it's a cold, overcast afternoon. And I really, really just want to make a cup of tea, snuggle under some blankets, and read the Morrison novel.

*sigh*

Maybe I'll pour myself a stiff drink and tackle the exams instead.


*I'll post an "On the Pile" update soon!

Paging Dr. Dolittle

Rowen went to the vet today. I took her to get her rabies vaccine, but when I was checking her in, the pet nurse noted that she was due for her 6-month comprehensive exam and a dental cleaning. They had an opening for the afternoon, so I went ahead with the exam and cleaning.

By all accounts, she was a model patient. They didn't even have to tranquilize her to get the IV in before the dental cleaning. But they did have to shave part of her leg, so now my baby has a bald spot and a bandage.

For the dental cleaning, they put her under a general anesthesia. I'm not quite sure why. Maybe the instruments freak out the animals. I know I'd like to be put under anesthesia for my dental cleanings!

But now Rowen is very groggy and not feeling so great. She keeps pacing around and crying. And I don't know what to do to help her, which just completely breaks my heart. Especially when she looks at me with her big brown eyes---all red and teary from all the procedures she had done today---and seems to be saying, "Please, make me feel better." And then she limps off when she realizes that I can't do anything to help her.

Thank Goodness!

I Voted!

I went to City Hall today to cast my early vote (technically an absentee vote). I only had to stand in line for about an hour---not too bad.

Keeping my fingers crossed---but my hopes in check---for an Obama/Biden victory!