More grading arrived today with another midterm exam. I managed to work on the piles of papers, though the three assignments and midterm will take a while to finish completely -- it just takes constant forward movement. Reading the blog posts from past years at this time note the same thing. I feel a bit like a hamster in a wheel -- running nowhere fast. In actuality, even grading a couple of papers means I've moved ahead with the huge process -- so maybe not going nowhere, though it is exhausting to keep running in a spinning wheel <grin>.
I've been reflecting on the career for the past day. A presentation next week will have me covering the high points of the past few decades in a 5-10 minutes. That may be a challenge. I'm hoping to find a creative way to do this so it doesn't sound like a laundry list of "and then I did this, and then that, and then . . . ". I have a couple of ideas so will ponder between grading bouts with the hope of getting something that holds attention in a fun way by next week. It is a creative piece that helps deal with the rote process of grading.
A song written in the mid-1960s came to mind for today. It fits the circular motions of life as well as the linear progression of things. The singer/songwriter wrote this before getting her first recording contract. It was first recorded in 1967 by Buffy Sainte Marie, who introduced the songwriter to her own manager who took on the songwriter -- and the rest, as they say, is history <smile>. I've included two versions, the first by the songwriter and the second by Buffy. I enjoy the juxtaposed arrangements. In Buffy's version, there is a bit of a round at the end of the song, which adds to the circular nature of the topic. Enjoy!
Circle Game -- Joni Mitchell
Circle Game -- Buffy Sainte Marie
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