Work & personal news
01.08.2005Made it through my first week of classes, after a bit of a bumpy start.
In 345, we've already covered the colonial period. It's done; we're moving on. I'm sure there's some disappointment that we won't spend more time discussing the intricate details of the Spaniards' entirely brutal & savage conquista of the wholesomely egalitarian & peace-loving Amerindian empires (please note the slight sarcasm). But this is a political science class on "modern Latin America" and, frankly, I'm not interested in teaching a class on history, anthropology, sociology, or whatever. So. We're moving on to post-independence case studies of specific countries, before looking at democratization in the last two decades.
So far, I've only handed out the syllabus in 105. No chance yet to disappointed them.
I've figured out a schedule that gives me 20 hours of dissertation work, w/o interfering in w/ my teaching & prep time. I'm just not used to a "regular" schedule, having lived in an academia dreamworld for so long. This is the first time in my life that I've had to "work" five full days in a row (or more). Unbelievable, n'est pas?
In more personal news:
Enjoyed brunch today w/ someone I've not seen in a decade. Someone who used to be my best friend. I was worried it'd be awkward; it wasn't.
After some depressing IMs from Bolivia, met up w/ some pals at LAN of Oz, a new LAN gaming lounge downtown. Ran around virtual WW2 battlefields, killing each other repeatedly. Good for relieving stress; bad for the carpal tunnel.
Then home to my cats, who're on a highly restricted diet. Annie needs to lose a significant amount of weight to avoid serious health issues (too many people think she's got back problems due to her weight). She seems a bit friskier, and I've never noticed anything wrong. Either way, Sophie (who does not need to be on a diet) & Annie are now restricted to a single can of cat food per day (not each, total).
Watched King Arthur. Except for some interesting bits, a lackluster flick ("hey, let's combine Gladiator w/ Braveheart, but w/o character development"). Also, don't think I'll watch another film w/ Clive Owen in it. The British Dennis Quaid. Both have only one expression, some weird mix of brooding, spite, and confusion that makes them look constipated.
The biggest problem was pretending to give a different origin to the Arthurian legend. A plausible one, sure. But you've to know the legend really well to see parallels (more closely drawn in, say, Lord of the Rings). And hints (like the name of Arthur's sword) are just dropped out of nowhere. The director's commentary kept bringing up that the story was more than just about Arthur as a warrior. Really? Because that's pretty much the only way he's presented. At least it was better than First Knight. See The Mists of Avalon instead. Seriously.
Tomorrow's Sunday. A new week before me. Let's see if Mesa gets through it.
Posted by Miguel at 08:04 PM
Comments
who owns/runs this LAN of OZ?
clive owen> dunno. heard he's pretty convincing in the Jude Law/Natalie Portman/Julia Roberts vehicle Closer... and don't tell me you're not going to see Frank Miller's Sin City when it comes out... he's in that.
there are plenty of one dimensional constipated actors and actresses out there, i wouldn't lump Owen into that group just because he starred in what is essentialy the Van Helsig of Arthurian Legend.
just admit you went and saw that flick for Keira Knightly anyway and all constipation talk will be will be forgotten. *wink wink*
e.
Posted by: e_prime at January 9, 2005 11:56 AM