Today’s the first day of the WI Film Fest. We’re going to one movie, Salvo. I think it’s kind of an Italian gangster movie – IMDB says the main character is a hit man. Toni’s film studies teacher recommended it.
The movie’s not until 8:45, so it’s already been a work day. Into the office at 9:00, to try to sort out what’s starting to sound like 35 or 36 library science grad students who want to do their required internships this summer. Last summer there were only 23 so I was able to supervise all of them, but with this many, I’m going to need help. We had a meeting in the afternoon with the branding company that we’re working with to try to come up with some new logos, and materials to hand out at conferences when we’re trying to recruit students, or go into conference programs, or online. It was kind of excruciating – I think we were expecting a little more facilitation from the consultant, in addition to the branding work. So afterwards, I just came home, feeling brain dead. And it was quarter to 5:00. So, I didn’t send a single email for the teaching event I’m planning for the first week of June, or look at the agenda for the phone meeting I have tomorrow.
I made stir fry veggies and rice, using up some of the dip veggies from the indoor barbecue – cauliflower and celery and broccoli. With toasted almonds and tofu.
Stirfy veg with tofu & almonds
And, it’s already been a week …. Monday and Tuesday John was as depressed about grad school as he’s ever been – so so was I. Monday I walked with Ann, then took my laptop in so that the tech guy could remove Windows XP. I worked at home the rest of the day, and got quite a bit done, but this seems to be the time of the year when there’re just a bunch of things that keep falling off the end of the to-do list. Tuesday morning I had a meeting, then came home, ate, and went to work the polls. I don’t know what it was that I ate – giant bowl of oatmeal with dates and bananas? the Bubbe prunes the day before? the hummus & pita I ate when I was on break at 4:30? – but by 6:30, 7:00 p.m. I was miserable with stomach pains. And, as an election official you are warned repeatedly not to expect to go home as soon as the polls close at 8:00 – you have to help make sure all the ballots are properly sealed up, and take apart the voting booths, and take down all the signs. Things looked pretty secure by 8:30, so I signed out, came home, got into pajamas, and made a big cup of ginger tea. Drank it and rested the warm cup on my belly while I watched an episode of House of Cards and the very last Sopranos ever. With cats to hold me down. Just adding the link got “Don’t stop believing” going through my head again.
And PS – we didn’t like Salvo much – it was supposed to have aspects of spaghetti Westerns, was filmed in ruined industrial landscapes in Italy, and the description made it sound like it was going to be sort of funny – going to make fun of mafia hit men. But it wasn’t. It was slow moving and drab. The theater where it was shown is annoying too. It’s this brand new room in the Chazen – it can project anything, and has a great sound system – but the seats don’t even have enough leg room for someone the size of me. And they creak, and people were coughing – so the watching experience was as drab and slow moving as the film.
