I suppose I should start with a �Happy New Year,� except that I�m feeling a bit down about the whole event. I haven�t accomplished what I had hoped to do by the end of 2004. Here�s to hoping 2005 will be a bit more productive.

To start things off on the right foot, I�ve been barreling through my syllabus. I know people who can dash these things off like nothing, and maybe I�ll be able to do that eventually. But when I write syllabi, I am essentially also writing my lectures, or at least outlining them. It�s good from the standpoint of teaching, as I get most of my work done early. But it is laborious. I can�t seem to quite get all the pieces to fall into place with this one, although I know I�m close. I have hit the point I do with every undergrad course where the mind starts to reel with the amount of material that needs to be covered in a short time and I have to take a step back, take a deep breath, and try really hard to see it from the student perspective.

Time is short today, thanks to a backlog of work and AJ�s ever-shrinking naps. But tomorrow � preschool for AJ and two and a half hours all to myself.

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