Teachers and Undertakers

I was not invited to the economic meltdown. I went to work in a field with little prospect for financial advancement and infinite job security. (Teachers and undertakers remained solvent during the Great Depression. I’m the former.) Even worse: I didn’t invest. My only retirement savings has been through the state pension fund. I own my car, and […]

Winter’s Last Grab

Theoretically, the arrival of spring is inevitable. It doesn’t feel inevitable in April. We get handed a day of sun and short sleeves, the forsythia squint out, and then winter yanks us back. Today is forty degrees, overcast as a trenchcoat, and the wind slaps everyone in the face. Grow up! It’s not spring yet! […]

Scenes from the Chemistry Lab

D and I often experiment in the chemistry lab together. I have a student teacher right now, so I have the luxury of pulling out my most egregious troublemakers (like D) to give them my full attention. The chemistry lab is usually unoccupied, and right across the hall from my classroom, so that’s where exiles retreat to. […]

Visit of the Muppet Monks

Last Sunday evening, instead of walking in to the dark, silent sanctuary of my church, I pulled open the door and saw seven guys dressed like Big Bird, moaning. Oh: we were hosting some Buddhist monks. I tiptoed to my favorite pew, next to the St. John window, and sat down. I guess they reminded me of […]