A strange thing on the way to the campus

Today was one of those days that everything was just... odd.

Josh and I walked down to campus today so I could check on a student's grade. The student claimed that she didn't receive a final grade in one of my classes and I knew that she was there and I remembered grading her paper. So all I could assume was that there was a typo somewhere in the steps to post her grade.

Out of 184 students it's bound to happen and it's easily fixed.

So while on Offnere, a main north-south artery in Portsmouth, we were walking by a building that we have passed several times when I happened to read the billboard outside. Much to my shock, Josh claims that the sign had this message on it for some time now and that I've just missed it. Truth be told, I can't remember ever actually looking at the sign before today more than a casual glance and I am fairly confident that I would have picked up on the word 'Murder' sometime before now.

Today, for some reason, it finally registered and I was a bit surprised to say the least. Not only has some woman lost her husband but she's also offering a reward to the capture of whoever killed him. This is not something that I would find uncommon - but the fact that she's advertising that she's investigating her husband's murder, may suggest that she's either unsatisfied with the work of the local police department or feels that she can find more information than they can detect by throwing out the promise of some reward. There's also the more curious alternative that she is advertising her own interest in her husband's murder to possibly remove the air of guilt or complicity from around her shoulders. I would love to hear about something so dramatic as that, but I doubt anyone in this town could try and throw up any kind of plausible deniability such as this.

I have no idea who the man was who was murdered, how he died or even what the case file might reveal as to a possible motive, but I'm curious.

Strange. Very strange.

Projects:

Chalkboard: 95% (just need to attach the supports and mount it to the wall.

Wallpaper: 50% (no movement)

Driveway: 6% (Thought about it again today)

Mother Nature... WTF?

Ok,

So I'm all about a crisp spring morning but FORTY-FIVE DEGREES!?!?!

This morning I got out of bed to the smell of brewing coffee (roommates are so handy and since this one is a *twitch* morning person, he has become the in-house Barrista) and stumbled through the house. When I spied the thermometer / clock thing in Josh's room I saw that it was only 45 degrees outside.

WTF?

I know that classes ended a wee bit early this year, but the last I checked we shouldn't be having March-like mornings in MAY.

Someone needs to check Mother Nature's Adderall prescription.

Brr.

-Tom

Week 1, down

... Fourteen to go.

Project Updates:

Chalkboard: 90% complete
Wallpaper: 60% complete
Driveway: 5% (ok, so I've -thought- about doing it a few times)
Painting Car Port: 5% (yup, you guessed it.)

The chalkboard that I've been working on with Josh is almost complete. This past Friday I got the board and we primed it with two coats and then put on two of the black, chalkboard paint. Today was the application of the cork board border. I know me and I will definitely have a few dozen things posted up on the edge of reminders and designs or projects that I'm progressing. The wallpaper has all but been removed from the walls of the middle, or "living" room. I have to continue to scrape and sand the wall here and there to remove any loose bits of paper that refuse to be scraped free. This is, essentially, the easy part. Once all of that is complete then I can start the arduous task of -FINDING- a replacement wallpaper. Putting it up is fairly easy.

As for beating the driveway into submission or painting the carport - well, both of those have suffered this first week of my summer vacation.

I'll post some pictures of the two projects that have gotten any kind of attention as soon as I figure how to yank them down from my new phone.

Until then -

Go see Star Trek.

-Tom

Freedom

Well, it's that time again.

As of 5 p.m. this afternoon, I have posted the last of my exam grades, handled the last of the emails sent to me by students hoping / pleading for "understanding" or "assistance" with their grade.

It may be yet another constant in the universe, but whenever I assign extra-credit for my classes, the only students who actually complete it are the ones who don't need the extra points. All those who blow it off are those who could have really used the help by the end of the year?

What does this mean? Well, it means that I can usually shut down any of the begging, pleading, and general childishness that I get from some students by simply asking, "Did you do the extra-credit?" When they reply, "Well, no, but I had a good reason." I usually end the conversation. Life is too short to hear yet another excuse for poor preparation or performance.

Now that I'm on my summer break (aka, being unemployed), I can work on my house projects. Last summer started off with fixing a bathroom sink. This year it's been ripping down wallpaper in my living room. The old wallpaper was put up some time ago and needed to be replaced. It shouldn't cost too much to repaper the old walls, but more on that later.

As for now it's late and I need to get some sleep. Tomorrow I plan on attacking my driveway with a sledgehammer.


See ya.

-Tom