Meara, if it makes you feel better, I'm not sure my ability to recognize creepy men has helped me very much in life.

In happier news, looks like my genetic testing was negative, so that's a relief.

That is happy news, megan.

In happier news, looks like my genetic testing was negative, so that's a relief.

yay!

Uh oh, Perkins, you sure it wasn't dita just crawling on your back while you slept?

(I realize now that the preceding question probably gives Megan more heebiejeebies than does the bed bug question.)

Maybe that's how they steal your soul.

Maybe that's how they steal your soul.

This explains my soullessness!

I got an 86 on the facial recognition test, but I'm not sure the kind of recognition they were testing is very useful. What I'd like to see a test for is matching face with context.

I've had a bazillion embarrassing moments where I've run into someone I know (and who knows me), but I can't figure out how I know them. It takes a huge number of repeat encounters before I can consistently recognize someone out of their usual context (work, knitting store, gym, etc.)

I've had a bazillion embarrassing moments where I've run into someone I know (and who knows me), but I can't figure out how I know them.

Me too. Worse, flat-out not recognizing someone out of their normal (to me) context. Like, I've always seen Familiar Person in Renaissance costume, and here she is in the Safeway in sweats, and I have no clue that she's even someone I know until she starts talking to me.

Yeah, I'm lousy at recognizing people out of context. Yesterday I ran into a coworker at the gym. It took 5-10 minutes to figure out where I knew her from. I spend hours every month in small meeting rooms with the woman, and take notes at one of them that include her name. Oh, well.

I was wondering earlier how English teachers with freakin CHILDREN cope.

Um... I don't know but there are times that I'm pretty sure I'm not doing a good job at either.

I do better, actually, when I teach all new books -- last year I taught stuff I knew and was like, YAWN. This year, I've taught some stuff I know plus Invisible Man (which I hadn't read before), Jane Eyre and Importance of Being Earnest (which I read in high school) and now Love in the Time of Cholera (which I hadn't read since college).

My thing is the shear amount of writing I assign. Since we ave 6 weeks until AP, I will assign two in-class essays each week until the big test. Plus 2 or 3 out of classroom assignments during that period.

Not to mention the research papers I do in my expository class.

God, Kat. That's crazy writin'.

We should all really, really come up with a list of books we teach, rubrics, etc, and share on Google docs.

You know, in our copious free time.