Failed relationships: 2
Failed attempts to get to New York for MLA: 1
Subsequent snow bombs avoided: 1
Freshman seminars taught: 3
Workload sections taught: 5
Other writing courses taught: 10
Shakespeare courses taught: 1
Grad classes taught: 1
Independent Studies taught: 3
Times I got to be in a room with Peter S. Beagle: 1
Plays/Performances (The Nether at CapStage, Cudamani at Mondavi, Eddie Izzard at Mondavi, Weird Al at the Crest, The Bluest Eye at UCD, Office Hour at Berkeley Rep, Angels in America at Berkeley Rep, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in London, Tartuffe in London, The Jungle in London, Everyone’s Talking About Jaime in London; The Thanksgiving Play at CapStage; Tig Notaro in Napa; three staged readings at CapStage; The Wolves at CapStage; Alan Parsons Project at the Crest; A Doll’s House, Part 2 at Berkeley Rep; Snow in Midsummer in Ashland, Manahatta in Ashland, The Way the Mountain Moved in Ashland, The Book of Will in Ashland, Brian Poshein at the Punchline; Sweat at CapStage; Rae Gouirand in Woodland; Paula Poundstone at PCA/ACA; Paula Poundstone at Mondavi; Meet Me in St. Louis at the Woodland Opera House): 29
(Best Play: The Jungle)
(Worst Play: Tartuffe (Runner up: Meet Me in St. Louis))
Campus Book Project Performances Performed: 2
Safe cars purchased for the boy: 1
Healthcare appts: too many (I average three/four a week)
Conferences (SWPCA/ACA (Albuquerque), PCA/ACA (Indianapolis), Great Writing Conference (London), WorldCon in San Jose; MPCA/ACA in Indianapolis; Utopian Studies (Berkeley): 6
Conferences turned down: 2
Trips with Melissa: 3
Trips with Vanessa: 3
Side trips to Santa Fe: 1
Times I had a color-changing cocktail: 1
Speakers hosted through Conversations with Writers: 1 (Mike Winfield!)
Times I got to see what was in Frida Kahlo’s bathroom: 1
Close disasters that harmed our lungs and closed our schools: 1
Times I was featured in UC Davis magazine: 1
Margaret Atwood Journal volumes edited: 1
Times I walked past George RR Martin: 3
Honey festivals attended: 1
Presents from my mother for my birthday in August: unknown; she swears she’ll get around to sending it/them.
Appreciation certificates: 1
Showcases with my stand-up kids: many
Books turned in to publishers: 2
Book proposals turned in to publishers: 1
Awesome book covers Denise fought hard for and that we got: 1
Book club meetings at my place: about 50
Days I thought, “wow, I thought this country couldn’t get any worse, but . . .”: 365
Cheating students caught: 5
Upper Division Comp Exam Administrations: 3
Cats who passed: 2
Kittens we adopted: 2
Black cats who now live here: 2
Parts of my face that are safe from a black kitten: 0
Blind cats who now live here: 1
Blogs I discovered praising my teaching: 1
New restaurants: Many
(Favorite: Talli-Joe’s in London)
Museums: many
Times I decided to dye the ends of my hair blue-black, for a comic book Wonder Woman effect, which was supposed to be gone after 7-14 washes: 1
Months the ends of my hair have been green: 6 (and counting)
Books read: lots
Books given up on: 3
New musicians discovered: many
(favorite: Laura Mvula)
Nandos meals: 1
Shows binge-watched: Too many?
Haircuts: 1
Pedicures: 3 (lifetime: 3)
Manicures: 0 (lifetime: 0)
Time with friends: Never enough.
Abdominal migraines: 1
Visits to the ER for abdominal migraines: 1
Times during that visit that I had to explain to healthcare professionals what abdominal migraines are: 3
Times I had to go the ER because I suddenly started feeling really weird and it hurt to breathe but I was in a meeting with our HR person and I thought to myself, “something is really wrong. As soon as I get out of this meeting and teach my class and grade some papers, I should lie down.” But then the HR woman said, “you are rapidly changing colors. Can I call you an ambulance?”
Times I had my son come pick me up from the HR woman’s office because there was no way I was going to pay $800 for an ambulance again.
Times I told the ER doc that I was relieved that he didn’t know what was wrong with me, because if he did know, it would mean I’d had a heart attack or an embolism: 1
Times I took an actual vacation to Ashland: 1
Times my car was chased by a wild turkies: 2
New recipes: Many
(Favorites: crock pot pra ram; creamy creole pasta with shrimp)
Raises for an accomplishment from three years ago: 1
Raises for an accomplishment from two years ago: 1
Ridiculously awful things UCD has done since then (to me and mine), including making it impossible for me to get another merit raise: 2
Children graduated from college: 1
