awakeI see the hurricane did not do quite what it could have done and maybe won't set off another freak show of incompetence and callousness. that would be good. contrary to what some rightist pundits think, most liberals don't cheer when politicians kill. I suspect the pundits project their own responses.
but we'll see. I wonder about those who couldn't evacuate but the storm's not over so I guess we don't know yet how everyone will do.
I got up early to see if I could get some work done before heading off to the zendo. I'm not sure I will stay for the lecture this time although I did want to talk afterwards to someone about next week's three-day retreat that I'm thinking of doing although it costs money I don't really have to spare. you can negotiate prices though.
santiago is curled up on my lap as if to ask why we are out of bed. this of course means I can't really move. last night he slept curled up in my armpit. it's cozier and sweeter than it sounds. I noted that it is just about as nice to sleep surrounded by cats who love you as to sleep next to a person who loves you. and cats don't snore. I was going to say they also take up less of the bed but we all know that's not really true. the three of us, though, we have our places all worked out so that no one is crowded and everyone touches. santiago will wake me up in the middle of the night if I stray from my position of welcoming him with my left arm. he taps my shoulder and meows till I turn back over. it is at once annoying and cute.
I'm not sure just what sort of work I wanted to do. I have to: pick out next week's readings from the collected poems and letters of Rimbaud, write their first paper assignment, read and take notes on 15 pages of Nietzsche and then make up a lecture. although one might think that planning ahead and reading the Nietzsche now would be good, I actually prefer to leave that till as close to class time as I can push it and still have time to produce something coherent to say. that way all the inspiration that hits can be used to present instead of allowed to dissipate. so far it has worked well.
I don't know exactly what will turn out to be most pertinent in Nietzsche--I mean I have a good idea of what I'm going to say, but I don't know where their interest and/or sticking points might be, so it is hard to write an assignment just yet. I tend to follow class interests in assigning papers so that they get to write about a subject that has actually caught their eye already. I have considered emailing their assignment to them on Tuesday but that would mean we wouldn't get to talk a lot about the paper in class on Monday, and I think they will need a certain amount of talking about it. so I'm not sure what to do about that just yet.
I guess this means pick out some Rimbaud. Rimbaud before zen. that should spice up meditation.
