The Thoughts of a Frumpy Professor

............................................ ............................................ A blog devoted to the ramblings of a small town, middle aged college professor as he experiences life and all its strange variances.

Sunday, January 26, 2014

Not the Best

Today was not the best day.  My wife had a disagreement with me, and it made much of the day not the calming sanctuary I much prefer.  After a lot I'd prodding, we talked it through about two hour ago and things are on a more even keel.  It was a waste of a day.  

PipeTobacco

Saturday, January 25, 2014

Goodwill

We went to our local Goodwill Store today.  We had not been there in probably 3-4 months.  The whole family went because there were a few costumes we needed to start finding clothes for that would fit an "earlier period". These are to be for a future costume party event we will get to go to.  We did find a few pieces that fit the bill. 

Additionally, I found two dress shirts for me that were like new and will be rotated into my clothes to wear with my sport coats at work.   My wife found one blouse she liked as well.  If you look carefully, every once in a while you can often find really nice stuff. 

PipeTobacco

Friday, January 24, 2014

Heat Wave

We may get a "heat wave" tomorrow.  It may be 20 degrees Fahrenheit!  Yeah!

All is well & calm.

PipeTobacco

Thursday, January 23, 2014

Damn the Cold!

It has been horrendous in terms of temperature the last few days and tomorrow will be worse still.  It is anticipated to be -11 degrees Fahrenheit at 5 when I will be walking outside with wind chills of about - 35 degrees.  I will (God willing) do my walk, however.  I will dress warmly.  I do not take our dog out for the walk when it gets below 15 degrees.  So, it will be a solo mission tomorrow morning.  

Life has continued to feel calm even with a few snafus so that is good.  I have not been able to write the last few days because of several late night meetings that kept me out until 10 pm.  They are over now so I should be able to write daily again.  Wish me luck for tomorrow!

PipeTobacco!


Sunday, January 19, 2014

Fish

Today was just a simple day.  We spent much of the day cleaning and organizing to help next week run more smoothly.  It is not fun work, but it is satisfying in its own way and reaps a lot of benefits for the next several days.  In the afternoon we went to the community pool and swam around and goofed around for about 2 hours.  It was relaxing and peaceful.

PipeTobacco

Saturday, January 18, 2014

Nice Saturday

I got up at 5;00am and did an extra long walk outside.  It was a pleasant 17 degrees. Cloud cover and humidity made it very comfortable.  Crawled back into bed around 7 am and had a delightfully slow and long  "intimate interlude" with my wife, and then slept almost to 10:30.  We ate, went to the library with the whole  family and puttered around there for an hour or two.  In total we checked out a dozen books and I bought two great sounding science suspense novels from their used book sale.  We then went to Mass, went grocery shopping am. Will be eating dinner shortly.  Calmness continues.  Can it get any better?  It was a great day.

PipeTobacco

Friday, January 17, 2014

Gentle & Serene

I went to visit my elderly father-in-law this afternoon. Ample libations were enjoyed. Pipes were enjoyed. I feel very pleasant. Life is good.

We had a Department meeting today at the U.  Because of some aggravating information from another Department, two faculty members stormed out of the meeting.  I did not leave and did not feel any significant angst.  In fact,I felt rather calm & serene during the whole thing.  Maybe I am on a real upswing in life?  

PipeTobacco

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Just Tired

It was a good, calm day.  But it was long... I got up at 4:45 to walk and get to the gym then had a heavy day of teaching.  That was all normal for Thursday, but I also had two late evening meetings I had to attend.  They were smooth, but I admit I am bushed, havin. Just arrived home.  Therefore I do not have much else to say at the moment.  I just want to eat and relax some before bed.

PipeTobacco

Wednesday, January 15, 2014

A Record?

I am being only a little facetious when I say the title above. I am again feeling a general sense of calmness and well-being. This is a very nice start of the semester. Classes were fun and enjoyable no major problems have arisen.  As I sit here ruminating with a pipe and typing away, I feel at peace.  It is wonderful.  Hey question I will pose, is, what is the actual chemical contaminant that was released in West Virginia waterways?  I have not had enough time to investigate and figure it out yet. The news reports that I have heard have not mentioned the actual chemical by name. It will be interesting to know what the chemical is, for it could be something worth investigating in my research, at least in a small student project.

PipeTobacco

Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Balmy & Pleasant for Here

It is a very pleasantly balmy 32 degrees here at the moment and I am sitting outside in the backyard smoking my pipe while I give our puppy time to do her "business" after eating her dinner a few minutes ago.  The cloud cover is quite dense and palpable which lends to the warmth, and the is a gentle snowfall of large, heavy flakes.  I am still having a pleasant feeling of calmness which I am trying to parlay into every aspect of day-to-day living.  The success I have been having in this regard is delightful.  

PipeTobacco

Monday, January 13, 2014

Must Start

I must start writing again. I miss the interaction on my blog. I will start with a brief post today. And try to have at least five posts per week.  It was a busy day at the U. But it was an enjoyable day as well. My class went well and I talked way more than I had in a long time.  I am trying to keep up a lifestyle of simplicity and calmness and general feelings of good will.  I am working to keep my emotions even keeled and to have general feelings of contentment. So far so good.

PipeTobacco

Wednesday, January 01, 2014

.
"Interesting" Day



The first day of 2014 has been a little off kilter here for a number of reasons:

1.  It was annoyingly damn cold this morning.  The thermometer on my vehicle stated it was -4 at 8:30am.  I have no idea how cold it was when I was walking at 5:00am. 

2.  I woke up in a real ornery mood this morning (no, not from a hangover) because of a bad dream.  The type of dream where you end up clenching your fists (and I also clench my toes) and grind your teeth very badly.  It is the type of dream where you awaken MUCH MORE tired than when you went to bed.  The dream was basically about my childhood home, the death of my father, and the subsequent selling of the family home, and the distribution of all of his possessions. 

3.  I was able to indulge in two pipes, one before heading out on my walk, and one upon my return, then still feeling very irritable, I knew the only way to really get out of the mood (at least easily), was to go sleep again, and get into a REM sleep stage that would help my body to relax.  So, I went through my "night" routine again, and crawled into bed, and slept for about an our and a half.  That did the trick, and I felt back to my normal self upon awakening. 

4.  Probably one of the more truly enjoyable things today was that I ate a pomegranate and a grapefruit for breakfast in addition to my normal cereal with blueberries, yogurt, and grapes/apples/melon.  I always forget how good pomegranate is, because I do not have them that often.  I should request my wife to buy them more frequently. 

So, nothing too exciting.  Just a series of circumstances that made life a bit off kilter.

PipeTobacco