Student Musings

I've only done the bare minimum on my blog recently, which usually means Dreaming of France, and sometimes Tuesday Intros, just because books are still available to distract us from things.
Of course, I'm still teaching college (university) and the students frequently either infuriate me or delight me.
Like the student last Friday who walked up to the desk to turn in his assignment.

Student: I just wrote down some ideas instead of a whole counter argument paragraph.
Me: That was the whole point to write the counterargument and the rebuttal.
Student: Oh, I wasn't really listening.
Me: (tearing my hair out)

We only had class on Monday this week because of Thanksgiving (Lucky me!).

This is a class selfie from a long ago class. My current classes
have 15 to 20 students in them, but it's the only class picture I have.

One of my students, Tyler, who has missed a lot of classes, stood in front of my desk with an essay in his hand. "I'm so sick. The only reason I'm here is because of you," he said. I could tell that he had a cold, runny nose, sneezing.
"Well thank you," I responded. Then I added the same thing I tell my children, "If you make sure you don't miss classes unless you're sick or an it's emergency then it isn't a big deal when you do miss because you have a cold."
As he started to walk back to his desk, I called out, "One of the students in my 8 o'clock class has chemotherapy every week and he's still in class every day, but thanks for coming while you have a cold."
Nothing like a little guilt to make students feel bad.

I don't want you to think that all of my students are slackers though. I was chatting with my class about how happy I was to spend Thanksgiving with only my husband and my three children. I said that after dinner, we'd have game night. Then I pondered how happy my 24-year-old, 23-year-old and 20-year-old would be to stay home and play games with their family.
"Wow! You have kids that old?" one young female student asked. "I thought you were like 30."
Her grade is now being adjusted upward.

The semester is nearly over now, three more weeks,
and aside from one student who emailed to complain that I shouldn't have talked to the class about the election, my students have pretty much been a delight this semester.
Hope it's the same in January when we start all over again.

A Professor's Hair Diary Week 4

Four weeks into the semester, I've successfully worn a different hairstyle for each day of class -- that's 11 days out of 45.

My goal is to wear a different hairstyle every day I teach. I'm sharing on Instagram, where you'll find me @runningfan63 and on Twitter @paulitakincer. If you want to hear more about my crazy scheme, you can find the original post on my blog A Professor's Hair Diary.

"Did you do something different to your hair?" the garrulous student who sits in the front row called out at the same time that another student said,"Your hair looks nice."
Finally, during Week 4, my students had noticed and commented on my hair. Unfortunately, it didn't have anything to do with an elaborate hairstyle,  like the kinds I'd been wearing for four weeks. The comments came the day after I got a haircut and the stylist straightened it.
I would have gotten a comment from a student even if I'd worn my hair the exact same way every day - down and curly.
I do love having my hair straightened though. I felt quite beautiful with my long, flowing locks on the walk home

My hair is generally just below my shoulders when it's curly, but it reaches to the middle of my back, past my shoulder blades when it's straightened. Sometimes I feel like it's choking me at night as strands get wrapped around my throat.
So, after four weeks of hairstyles, my students noticed a difference, but they haven't noticed all the carefully sculpted hairstyles -- a different one every day.
Technically, the comment, "Did you do something different to your hair?" is kind of insulting since I've done something different every day.
Here are the pictures from this week.
Monday I wore a side bun. I rolled the sides and gathered my hair into a bun on the right side of the back of my head.

On Wednesday was the noticeable straight hair.

On Friday, I tried four or five different hairstyles before I ended up just pulling the sides back in a barrette.

That's it for this week's Professor's Hair Diary. Thanks for hanging around. I hope I can stick to it. I may be losing enthusiasm. 

Three Weeks of A Professor's Hair Diary

Three weeks into the semester, I've successfully worn a different hairstyle for each day of class -- that's 8 days out of 45.

My goal is to wear a different hairstyle every day I teach. I'm sharing on Instagram, where you'll find me @runningfan63 and on Twitter @paulitakincer. If you want to hear more about my crazy scheme, you can find the original post on my blog A Professor's Hair Diary. And the first week post at Week 1.
 I thought I'd catch you up on the past two weeks.

Week Two we only had class two days because of Labor Day. 

Grace did this side-braided bun on Wednesday. 

Then on Friday, she twisted the sides and created a rose in the back. 

Next we moved on to Week Three on Monday.

This is a braided headband. 

As I look at all these pictures of my  hair, I realize that parts of it have really gotten redder or lighter from the sun. Never fear, I'm going to the hair stylist next week and she can hopefully rectify that. 

This is the first day I've had to do my hair myself because Grace left for a trip to Dublin and London. I fell back on a traditional French twist. The filter I used on instagram makes it look a little purplish. 

On Friday, I tried a complicated, basket-weave type hairstyle. Because my hair is curly (or because I did it wrong?) it doesn't look the same. Basically I created four pony tails on the back of my head and tucked them through, then separated them and curled them under at the sides. It looks a bit of a mess, doesn't it? 

Here's the original photo of what it should have looked like. 

But  you can see she did it on a mannequin and I don't have mannequin hair. I get my hair cut on Tuesday and since she usually straightens it, I could try this hairstyle again and see if it is more successful. Or would that be cheating to use the same style?

When I finished working on my hair that morning, I felt like I'd had quite a workout. 

After three weeks of different hairstyles, none of my students have noticed or said anything, including four students who had me for class in previous semesters. 

I did have one student who told me she liked my hair when I wore it in the French twist, so at least she noticed something. 

A Professor's Hair Diary -- Week 1

Here I am on the last day of the first week of the semester, having completed three days of classes with three different hairstyles.

My goal is to wear a different hairstyle every day I teach. I'm sharing on Instagram, where you'll find me @runningfan63 and on Twitter @paulitakincer. If you want to hear more about my crazy scheme, you can find the original post on my blog A Professor's Hair Diary. 

I figured that each Friday, I can summarize the hairstyles here on my blog.

I started on Monday simply wearing my hair down and curly. I always straighten my bangs because they drive me crazy. 

On Wednesday, I dragged Grace out of bed and had her give me an upside-down braid that ended in a curly ponytail. The braid was a French braid and might have stood out more if was a reverse French braid, with the hair going under instead of over. Funny thing, that's how my mother learned to braid, so whenever she braided my hair, at my request, she braided it under long before it became popular.

By the time I finished teaching around 2 p.m., my head was aching from the braid pulling on it. I took it down as soon as I got home.

Today, I rousted Grace from bed again and she created a twisted tuck bun. 

None of my students have mentioned my hairstyles, but a student in the elevator gushed about my hair. And several of my colleagues admired today's style, giving me a chance to invite them to follow me on Instagram and Twitter. They immediately began to doubt that I'll be able to find 45 different hairstyles throughout the semester. Time will tell.

Also, Grace downloaded an app to my phone that allowed me to show two pictures simultaneously. I'm definitely learning from this experience.
I'll update you again next week.

A Professor's Hair Diary

A few weeks ago, I came up with the scheme of fixing my hair a different way for every day of the semester.

I teach Monday, Wednesday and Friday at one of my colleges beginning at 8 a.m. I plan to wear my hair down and curly -- natural -- the first day. Then after that I hope to wear a different hairstyle every day.
I'll capture the look on Instagram, which is now connected to my Twitter account, so if you want to follow along, my Instagram account is @runningfan63 and my Twitter account is @paulitakincer.
Grace has set up a Pinterest board with different ideas to try, and my hairstyles should get pretty elaborate quickly because Grace is leaving on Sept. 13. That means I'll only have her here to help me with my hair for a few weeks.
In addition to the challenge of trying to come up with a different hairstyle three times a week for 15 weeks, I wonder how long it will take the students to notice.
One of my teaching friends predicts they will never realize that my hair is different each time I come to class. I say they will.
My students have commented before if I start the semester wearing dresses every day and then switch to pants when it gets colder.
This morning, the day before classes begin, with seven total classes to teach, the whole idea is daunting, but hopefully the hairstyle meme will keep me enthused throughout the semester.

Saturday Snapshot -- Student Success

To participate in the Saturday Snapshot meme, post a photo that you (or a friend of family member) have taken. Then leave a direct link to your post on West Metro Mommy. Photos can be old or new, and be of any subject as long as they are clean and appropriate for all eyes to see. How much detail you give in the caption is entirely up to you. Please don't post random photos that you find online.
For me, as an adjunct college professor, the hours are long and the rewards are few.
Lucky for me, I have a husband with a good job and health insurance. So the work as an adjunct means a paycheck to help send my kids to college. Lately, things have taken a turn for worse. We used to be able to teach 15 hours per semester then work as tutors up to 15 hours more. That gave me a nice paycheck.
Blaming the new health care laws, the college is now restricting those hours to 11 teaching hours and no tutoring hours. And, they are counting the teaching hours as double -- 22 hours, even though they are paying us for 11 hours. They say they have to limit part-time workers to a total of 22 hours instead of 30.
Obviously, my salary this year is dropping, but my kids' college payments are going up. I feel like a fraud standing in front of my classes and telling them that education will help them make it in the world. I have a master's degree and I'm still getting the shaft from the system.
But this morning, I got an email from a former student that boosted my spirits a bit. She sent along a photo too.

Nubia was in my English composition class last fall. One of the assignments was to write a paper analyzing an athletic ad. Nubia chose an ad with a stationary bicycle that has a computer screen attached to help the riders envision bicycling in California or the south of France. The next paper, Nubia had to choose a new career or hobby to write about. She decided to investigate what it would take to complete a triathalon. And this photo shows me that she did just that. 

I told you that  I was going to send you the pictures of me at the end of the triathlon.
I did it. I had fun and Im very proud of myself. It is funny but everything started with the paper from your class :)

 So this morning, I'm feeling better about being a teacher. I may not be able to pay my kids' college bills, but that's what parent loans are for. And for some students, I do help change their lives.

The State of Denial

Isn't it funny how we block out things we don't want to think about?
I have some friends who are masters at it, and I call them on it all the time. But I didn't realize how much I deny when I'd just rather not deal with difficulties.
This realization came on Monday afternoon when my friend Ruth in Michigan called.
"What's going on? How was your weekend?" she asked.
I knew that Ruth had a big birthday party over the weekend, so I paused for just a minute trying to remember my weekend.
"Nothing much," I said. "I babysat for the girls on Saturday evening and Sunday morning. So that was fun. Fought with Spencer about whether college students have curfews, the usual. How bout you?"
Then I paused so she could tell me the details of her party.
After the party overview, I said, "Oh, did I tell you about my job?"
I'd found out Friday that the college where I teach is cutting back on hours for adjuncts, which basically means I need to start looking for a new job. The excuse is the new IRS rules which only allows us 18 hours per week rather than 30 -- and that's 18 contact hours, so only 9 hours that we are getting paid for. It's complicated, but means about half of the paychecks I was earning before so the college can avoid having to contribute to health insurance for adjuncts.
"And," I continued, "did I tell you that Grace drove the car through the back of the garage on Sunday?"
"What? No."
I explained that Grace thought she had clipped a bike tire as she was pulling into the garage and in trying to slam on the brakes, she hit the gas instead.
Crash! Thunk!.

I was in the kitchen when I looked into the backyard to see this.
I went running out and had to go around to the big garage door to reach Grace.
She was okay. Just shaken up, as anyone would be.
"So maybe my weekend wasn't as fine as I said earlier," I admitted.
"I guess not," Ruth laughed. And that's when I remembered the latest thing, the biggest, scariest thing.
"Oh, and my mom just called from Dad's heart test. They're doing triple bypass surgery tomorrow."
"Oh, no," Ruth said. "I'm sorry."
I was too.
But I can write about it now because the surgery is complete and he came through "a textbook" patient, which I hope is good.
I can't fly to be with my mom in Florida, but my brother is on his way and should be there soon to help her with the hospital visits.
So, other than needing to find a new job, get the car repaired, get the garage repaired, and my dad undergoing major surgery, the weekend was fine.
I wasn't in denial at all.

End of Vacation

Tonight, my long vacation comes to an end.
I finished teaching and submitted grades on Dec. 22. Since then, I have been lollygagging -- as far as work goes. I've read and watched too much TV. I've worked out and visited with family. I've harangued my kids and I'm sure they've wished I'd go back to work.
Classes started again Monday for one of the colleges where I teach, but I didn't actually have to show up until today -- my Friday night class. So, although I've communicated with people online, I hadn't faced students, turning on my entertaining teacher face.
Here's something surprising -- I get less done when I'm off work than when I work.
I do less housework.
I cook dinner less often.
I'm basically pretty unmotivated when I'm off work.
But everyone needs some down time, so I'm going to accept my laziness. No, I'm going to embrace my laziness.
I had some family life stress over my vacation; Maybe lying around rather than accomplishing things is what I needed to bounce back and become an A-personality professor and author.
I hope everyone had a chance to relax, even if you didn't get to a beach or ski lodge or didn't get time off work, like we college professors did.