One teaching week down, thirty one to go until next summer. It was a good teaching week, but I am exhausted. Being who I am, a rigorous teacher, I assigned all my students papers and thus I get to spend my weekend grading them.

During O week, when it's just teachers getting ready for the return of the students, we had an intramural event for team building. I fell during a running event. The runners before and after me both fell as well, so there must have been a slick spot on the floor. I spun onto my back mid fall so I wouldn't hit my head, but I did manage to bruise my shoulder blade and have been suffering a bit since Wednesday last. I think I may have also torn some connective tissue betwixt blade and back, maybe a cracked rib.

I've never been all that athletic, so I have no idea what possessed me to run. The principal has been sharing the security camera footage of our falls with anyone he can get to watch them. All viewers agree that mine is the best. It's good to play the fool at times, laugh at yourself, as long as you have Advil handy.

Elliot has been off schedule since I've gone back to work. Yesterday was rough as he got us up at four a.m. and neither one of us was able to catch a nap later - so we each had eighteen hour days. I'm letting Jes sleep in now and will try to catch a snooze in the afternoon.

I have a yen to go hit estate sales again, but I don't think I can make the time. Elliot is helping Jes sleep in right now by running his metal rattle over the floor vent like a cup on prison bars. BRB.

He's getting better with his balance. Thursday he did two free stands where he pushed away from what he had pulled up on. He didn't stay up long as the realization of what he had achieved sent him sprawling. He met two new girlfriends last night at Third Degree's Third Friday event - Jes was working the kiln forming table. Both little girls were within two weeks of him in age. One of them was tiny and already walking, the other was slightly bigger than him and right about where he is in both crawling and pulling up - though she is using the knee crawl a little more. It was cool to meet someone with a baby his size, as there aren't many. Oddly the mother had taken Jes' ceramics class at U.M.S.L. - small world.

Not much else to report. Work, bills, bed: your typical L.O.Q.D.