Courtesy of alice:

'What will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

It�s always nice to be prepared with such things in the event of an emergency.

Today has been spent in the world of digital gadgetry as I attempted to replace our digital camera that had been dropped one two many times and also to expand the range of our wireless network so I could get internet access in my office without holding the computer in the air over my head. Both ventures were successful and made me feel all manly and superior. I felt like I should pump my fists in the air and shout, �BOO-YAH!� (after putting the computer gently back on the desk, of course). Perhaps I�ll save these sentiments for tomorrow night�s trip to see the Sox vs. Royals. After this weekends sweep of the first place Tigers, even those of us whose interest in sports is usually minimal are feeling pretty pumped. I also got my course webpage setup and should have my syllabus finished, save for in and out of class performances by the end of the day. And I repeat: BOO-YAH!

Clearly aliens have abducted my vocabulary today.

The same cannot be said for Zadie Smith, whose novel On Beauty I finished last night. It is, quite simply, a terrific book. Not great literature per se, but beautifully rendered and very smart. Smith is one of very few authors equally skilled at plot and character and she shows both skills off beautifully here. Plus, as I�ve already mentioned here, it�s funny as hell. She also manages to write about some really unpleasant people in a way that you still feel sympathetic toward them (I�m thinking of Howard in particular). It�s honest and critical and yet not the least bit mean-spirited. Quite a trick. I can�t wait to reread Howards End to see how the two relate. I can�t say that I remember the Forster very well. I�ve read most of Forster�s novels, but somehow they all swim together in my head. This is, no doubt, due in no small part to Merchant & Ivory and the British period drama industry.

AJ and I also did a trial run of the walk to kindergarten (perhaps it should be called a trial walk, then), which starts two weeks from tomorrow. We walked up the driveway, down the long side of our woods, stopped to pet a large chocolate brown horse on the nose and continued up the hill past the barn. We crossed the street, cut down the side of the police department and community center buildings, crossed the community center parking lot, and there we were. Ten minutes, even with plenty of time for velvety horse noses and dawdling five-year-old legs. We played on both of the school�s playgrounds for a while. Outside the door on the far side of the school, there�s a large blacktop area with a giant United States map painted on it. AJ likes to be quizzed on his knowledge of U.S. geography there, so he can answer with his feet instead of his mouth. �Start off in the capital of the United States,� I suggested. He ran to the border between Virginia and Maryland. �Run to the state whose capital is Bismarck.� He headed Northwest to North Dakota. �Find the end of Route 66.� He hopped on one foot to southern California. �Run to the Sooner State and tell me its capital.� He sprinted south saying, �That�s too easy. It�s Oklahoma City!� He even remembered the difference between Columbus and Columbia this time, although I stumped him on Hartford. Still, he knows far more of the state nicknames than I do. I need to do some more studying before we play that game again.

And speaking of studying, I need to figure out how to work Brahms and Mahler back into my syllabus. I left them out last time because I wanted to spend a whole day on a single symphony but I�m still feeling guilty about it, even though I offer the standard caveat at the beginning of the course that this is not a survey class.

Are you sick of hearing about my teaching already? Because I�m starting to feel a little sick of hearing about it myself. Fortunately Mike Doughty is singing in my ear, ready to distract me.

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