I had no idea about the Ursulines, but now I am starting to love them. Awww.

Asshole kid's mother just called me and claimed that he got the application after the deadline. Just checked FedEx, and he got it SIX days before the deadline.

Good grief. That's dumb. (Also, I had no idea you still had to request applications by mail--can't you download everything on the internet, these days?)

The talk of grandmothers dying during finals makes me feel guilty that my grandmother really DID die during finals, my freshman year of college. Although as far as I remember, the only thing that I did was request from one prof to take the exam EARLY (which, sure, is still a request, and to leave school early, but...). My mom drove up earlier than she would've otherwise, and packed up my room while I took my last exam (which, since the prof let me take the other one a few days early, was on like, Saturday instead of Tuesday or something).

{{{DJ}}}

Also, {{{Vortex}}}. People need to lay off you. Seriously.

Thanks for all the ~ma. Presentation went very well. DONE!!!!

The talk of grandmothers dying during finals makes me feel guilty that my grandmother really DID die during finals

Don't you dare feel guilty. I -- and everyone else who teaches that I know -- are fine with making arrangements around real life.

Yay, GC! that is awesome.

woot, GC!!!

The nuns who ran my high school (who I also do freelance work for now) are Ursulines, and they kick ass.

I also went to an Ursuline high school (the one connected to my aunt's convent). There weren't a ton of nuns (hee Ton o' Nuns) teaching when I was in school but most of the ones who were still there were pretty kick ass. (Except the principal Sister Marian who was my nemisis.) It's an order that puts a very high priority on education. Many of my instructors were PhDs.

Makes squinty eyes at Juliana.

Don't make me cut you.

I just found out my good friends Mark and Silvie had to evacuate last night due to the big fire raging in Santa Barbara county. Silvie is 6 months pregnant. Any ~ma you can spare for no burning down of the house is appreciated.

I'd probably be a much better person if I weren't thinking, "That is *so* like her."

Welcome to the bad people club. When my friend Sam's wack-a-loon ex-girlfriend died overseas under questionable circumstances we were all (except Sam) speculating if it was a pimp or a dealer. We never said it to him, to him we just said we'd do what he needed -- which is all anyone can ever do anyway.

Less than an hour ago, I very nearly rear-ended a car with the bumpersticker "Liberalism is a mental condition."

Man, I'm enough of a child of the on-line discussion age that I want to print up retort bumperstickers. Like, " Thinking is not a mental condition. "

I also always wanted to make mock stickers of this [link] that say "MOM -- Opie & Anthony want to see her tits" and see how long people would drive around with them before noticing.

Speaking of students, I just had to leave the Reference Desk and put up a sign for people to find me in my office because one of our students was chewing a big wad of gum so loudly with his mouth open I was grossed out.

SURELY you have a "no gum in the library" rule that you can enforce? It can't be any better for the materials than food.

Thanks for all the ~ma. Presentation went very well. DONE!!!!

::boogies with GC::

It's an order that puts a very high priority on education.

When they were founded, their founder (foundress?) really emphasized living and working in their communities, rather than locking themselves away in cloisters. Which was pretty radical at the time.

They're fierce, and I really admire them.

Committing suicide, or having a heart attack, or getting hit with some other kind of tragedy does not actually change who you are as a person or what your behavior is. I think "that is so like her" or "he's still an asshole" or whathaveyou is a totally justifiable reaction, and totally different than "good, he deserves it" or "I'm glad she's dead."